The Girl in the Shadows
by Ammypaint16
Summary: The Gaang has finally made it to Ba Sing Se, and so has Prince Zuko and his uncle, but what happens when they both notice shadows flitting through the city?
1. Chapter 1

**All right this is my first FanFic so please don't chew me out for inaccuracy or something, but reviews are welcome!**

**This particular chapter takes place during episode 13 of Season 2, City of wall and Secrets, it starts as Zuko and his Uncle are walking down the lower ring marketplace.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own A: LAB, just Nyikani and Cado.**

**Nyikani: Beg your pardon? You don't own me, I own me!**

**Ammypaint16: I made you so technically I own you; now let's get to the story.**

**Nyikani: WHAT? *pulls out sai daggers***

**Ammypaint16: OK get to the story before I'm diced into hash! *to Nyikani while running* I'm SORRY!**

The Girl in the Shadows

Zuko was surveying the marketplace on his way to his and Uncle's new apartment, _hmph_, he thought, it disgusted him. Him, the Fire Prince, reduced to living in this lowly place among peasants and refugees, _refugees, __just __like __me_, he hated this place.

Uncle had caught up to him, he was carrying a painted vase with lovely orange flowers in it, Zuko looked at him disdainfully, "I just want our new place to look nice in case someone brings home a lady friend!" Uncle replied, nudging Zuko jokingly. Zuko frowned and looked away, "This city is a prison, I don't want to make a life here"

"Life happens wherever you go," Iroh told him, "Whether you make it or not." Zuko was only half-listening, when something caught his eye, he saw between two buildings two shadows hop from one roof to the next, then they were out of sight.

"Uncle! Did you see that?"

"See what?" Iroh asked as he turned to look at his nephew.

"Those shadows!"

"I didn't see anything, now come on, I got us both jobs and we start this afternoon." Zuko took one last look at where the shapes had disappeared, then walked off with his uncle.

Aang and the gang were still getting their tour from Ju Dee, (I don't know if that's how you spell it), and were stuck in the carriage while she went on and on about who lives here and what they do.

"Why do they have all these poor people blocked off in one part of the city?" Katara asked. "Ba Sing Se has many walls," Ju Dee answered, "There are those on the outside protecting us, and those…_blah __blah __blah, __there __she __goes __again__…_ Katara stopped listening and looked outside, she studied the decrepit buildings sitting next to new ones, the men working on clay or wood, then she froze as she saw two black figures running from one roof to the next, one on two legs and one on four, then vanished, Katara was so surprised that she gasped out loud.

"What's wrong Katara?" Aang asked, a worried expression on his face.

"Did you guys see those shadows?"

"No" Toph answered sarcastically.

Katara frowned, "Never mind." And looked out the window again, but the two shadows were long gone. _What __am __I __getting __so __worked __up __about, __they __were __just __two __strangers!_

Time Skip!

This is when Zuko and Iroh begin working in the tea shop.

*Crash!* "Oh dear I'm so sorry!" One of the customers had dropped a teapot and it had shattered on the ground.

"It's nothing; I'll get you a new pot of tea. Nephew, could you take this broken pot out and throw it away?" Iroh, (now deemed Mushi), asked Zuko, (now deemed Lee).

"Fine." He said with an unenthusiastic face, _anything __to __get __me __out __of __this __boring __tea __shop!_ He thought to himself. He dropped the pot in a nearby barrel when he hear a noise in a nearby alley and ran to investigate, what he came upon he had to make sure he was seeing correctly.

Three Dai Lee agents were fighting with a young girl dressed in all black, she had a black mask covering her face from the nose down, and a black headband tied around here forehead, her dark reddish-brown bangs hanging over it. Zuko watched for a few minutes, the girl was a good fighter, she was fast and agile, breaking the agents' rock-hands with a strange instrument on her right hand, it was a glove, but what were those claw things on the knuckles? And that wasn't her only weapon, she was also wielding two ninja sai daggers, (no, not kunai! Sai!), but as equipped as she was Zuko could see she was losing her ground, when all of a sudden she put her fingers to her mouth and let out a very high-pitched whistle. _Quit __staring __like __a __scared __rabbit __and __HELP __her!_

Just like that Zuko was in the fray, an agent shot a rock at him but he quickly dodged and knocked him off his feet, rendering the Dai Lee agent unconscious. Zuko was about to engage the second agent when out of nowhere a large animal came and seized the Dai Lee agent by the arm and tossed him aside with ease, landing him in a nearby trash barrel. Two down, one to go, the masked girl made short work of him, as he shot another rock-hand at her she jumped high into the air, and clung to the wall with her claw-glove, then while coming down gave a full power kick square in the head, and the Dai Lee agent was down for the count.

The girl got up and dusted herself off, Zuko took a few steps towards her when the large animal roared and pinned him down, the lupine face wearing a threatening snarl, the thick mane and tail bristling, and the sharp claws un-sheathed, _A __lionwolf?_ Zuko just stared wide-eyed at the dangerous beast when a single voice sounded out, _**"**__**Kuacha! **__**Kutolewa, **__**Cado.**__**"**_("Stop! Release, Cado.")(P.S. Zuko doesn't understand the language she is speaking.) It was the girl. To his surprise the lionwolf got up immediately and trotted over to the girl, who scratched it behind the ears, she looked around and Zuko realized she had dropped one of her sai daggers during the fight, he quickly found it and picked it up, and she took it with a silent nod of gratitude. Zuko began dusting himself off, "So, who are y-", he looked up to see the girl and her pet had disappeared.

Another Time Skip!

This is during Jett and Zuko's fight.

_Geez, __this __guy __just __won__'__t __quit! _Zuko thought as he blocked another swing from the hook swords, this Jett guy was good, _But__I__'__m__better!_ But Jett had a trick up his sleeve, he hooked his swords together and swung them, Zuko blocked it but lost one of his swords in the process. That was it, Jett had him, *clang!*

Zuko whirled around to see one of Jett's hook swords pinned on the ground, by a sai. Now it was even, one sword on one, and this time Zuko wasn't playing it safe, and swung his sword so close it sliced Jett's piece of straw in half, the Jett jumped back. "You see that? The Fire Nation is trying to silence me! It'll NEVER happen!" Jett shouted and leaped at Zuko, and the fight went on.

"Drop your weapons!" Two Dai Lee agents had heard the commotion and investigated. "Arrest them! They're firebenders!" Jett demanded. "This poor boy is confused," Iroh said, "We are just simple refugees." Pao the tea shop owner spoke up, "This young man wrecked my tea shop, and assaulted my employees!"

"It's true sir, we saw the whole thing." A guard added, "This crazy kid attacked the finest tea maker in the city!"

"Oh that's very sweet!" Iroh said smiling.

The agents went up to Jett, "Come with us, son." But instead of complying Jett swung his sword at them, but they caught it and disarmed him, then took him away in a carriage.

As the onlookers looked on, (wow that was redundant) Zuko picked up the sai dagger and looked at where it came from, and stood rigid as two glowing gold eyes stared back, then faded into the shadows. Later that night he took the sai and stuck in the wall outside the tea shop, he went to check the next day, and it was gone.

**I tried to keep to the original plotline as much as possible; I'll fix the little tweaks later. But basically this is the introduction of my OC, and there will be more of her in coming chapters.**

**So, does Zuko ever find out who the masked girl and her pet lionwolf are? Will Katara ever discover who was behind the 2 shadows? WILL you tell me if you liked it or not? I'll update the next chapter hopefully soon!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Here is the second chapter! :D This chapter takes place during Episode 14, season 2, Tales of Ba Sing Se, particularly during the part The Tale of Zuko (shocker).**

**Disclaimer: Yet again, I DO NOT own Avatar the Last Airbender, just my OC's.**

Beginning begins at the beginning (more redundance) of The Tale of Zuko.

"Uncle! Don't look now but there's a girl over at the corner table, she knows we're Fire Nation!"

Iroh turned around and noticed a girl in the corner of the tea shop, she had dark reddish-brown hair pulled back into a braid that went to her upper back, bangs at eye level, wearing a green tunic with a white shirt underneath, with light brown pants and working boots. Zuko turned his uncle around, "Didn't I say don't look?"

"Yes, I've seen that girl here quite a lot; it seems she has quite a little crush on you!" Iroh smiled.

"WHAT!" Zuko couldn't believe his ears, _A __CRUSH?_

"Thank you for the tea." Zuko turned around to see the girl holding out some coins, he hoped she hadn't overheard his and Uncle's conversation; he took the money and put it away. "What's your name?" asked the girl, Zuko answered, "My name's Lee, my uncle and I just moved here."

"Hi Lee, my name's Jen, thank you and, well, I was wondering if you'd like to go out some time?"

Iroh jumped in before Zuko could reply, "He'd love too!"

"Great! I'll meet you in front of the shop at sundown!" Jen smiled and then left the shop, leaving "Lee" standing there dumbfounded, Iroh put his arm on Zuko's shoulder and his nephew scowled at him.

Sundown in front of the Tea Shop

Zuko looked around and cautiously stepped out of the shop; his hair was slicked down and parted. Jen had arrived and was wearing a spring green dress with her hair let down with a small braid in the back. "Hi," she greeted, "Well, look at you, you look so cute!" She rubbed his head playfully and he tried to fix his hair, "It took my uncle 10 minutes to do my hair!" Jen took his arm and they headed to dinner.

"So, how do you like the city so far?" Jen asked "Lee" as they ate their dinner.

"It's ok."

"What do you like to do for fun?"

"Nothing."

"Excuse me sir," a waiter had come to their table, "Would you and your girlfriend care for dessert?"

"She is NOT my GIRLFRIEND!" Zuko had shouted so loud that the whole restaurant turned around to look at him. He looked back at Jen to see that she was eating an unusually large amount of noodles, "You…have…quite an appetite for a girl." _I __sound __like __an __idiot!_

"Umm…thanks? So, Lee, where were you and your uncle living before you came here?"

"Uhhhh, well, we've been…traveling around…for a long time…" Zuko stuttered.

"Oh, why were you travelling so much?"

"We were uh, part of this, traveling circus…"

"Really?" There was a glimmer in her eye, and Zuko suspected that she didn't quite believe him. "What, did you juggle?" She joked.

*deadpan look* "Yes, I juggled."

"Really? Can you show me something?" She asked as she handed him some plates, Zuko was about to decline when he saw the excited look on her face, so he took the plates and tried to juggle to the best of his ability, *crash!*

"I haven't practiced for a while." Zuko said as he wiped himself off.

"It's all right," Jen replied, "Hey, I wanna show you one of my favorite places in the city."

Jen was leading "Lee" by the hand to a fountain in a square, "I'm so exited for you to see the firelight fountain, the lamps make the water sparkle and reflect in the pool in the most beautiful way!" But when they arrived the fountain was dark and the lamps un-lit. "I can't believe it! They aren't lit."

Zuko looked at the sad expression on her face, _Don__'__t __do __it, __don__'__t __do __it, __don__'__t __do __it, __don__'__t-what __am __I __getting __myself __into?_"Close your eyes," he told her, "and don't peek." Jen obeyed and covered her eyes, Zuko stepped forward and readied himself, it had been a while since he had last firebended, but he quickly shot little fireballs at each lamp, being careful not to make too much noise.

"Ok, now you can look." Jen opened her eyes, and they widened as she saw the fountain fully lit. "Wow," she gasped, "What happened, how did they light? What did you…?" Zuko simply smiled and they looked at the fountain together, he felt her hand touch his and she began to lean in, but she was surprised to see a tea coupon in her face, "I brought you something! It's a coupon for a free cup of tea."

"Lee, this is so sweet."

"Don't thank me; it was my uncle's idea"

"Your uncle is a good teacher; I have something for you too: now it's your turn to close your eyes."

Zuko closed his eyes and Jen gave him a small kiss, and he began to give her one but quickly pulled back. "What's wrong?" Jen asked. "It's complicated, I have to go." Zuko began to leave, trying to ignore the hurt in Jen's eyes.

"Wait, before you do, can y-aaagh!"

Zuko whipped around at the sound of her scream, one of Jen's hands was pinned down by a rock hand, and six Dai Lee agents were closing in, he helped release Jen and she surveyed the situation, he could see the uneasiness in her eyes, and, sadness? She looked at "Lee" and kissed him on the cheek, "I'm sorry…" she said.

"For what?"

"For not telling you."

"About what?" Zuko wasn't sure where this was going. All of a sudden there was a glint in Jen's hazel eyes and she thrusted her arm forward and shot a ball of white fire, _She__'__s __a __firebender?_ There was another wall of pure white flame, but it was so strong and well controlled, Zuko couldn't believe his eyes, but jumped in and helped her fight off the agents, during the fight Jen put her fingers to her mouth, and let out a strangely familiar high-pitched whistle. _It __can__'__t __be, __there__'__s __no __way! _Zuko thought as he punched another agent, but right on cue a lionwolf charged in and took out an agent, then another, the fight was over like it began, just like that, but this time Zuko ignored the warning growls from Jen's pet and confronted her.

"You're a firebender?" he asked.

Jen looked down, avoiding his eyes, her voice was dull " *sigh* Yes, and while I'm here I might as well come clean, yes, I'm the girl you helped in the back alley behind the tea shop, and my name isn't Jen…it's Nyikani, I'm a refugee from the Fire Nation. I'm sorry I lied to you, I'll leave."

Nyikani started to walk away, but all of a sudden Zuko seized her arm, yanked her towards him, and kissed her, Nyikani, eyes wide with surprise, just looked at him.

"Ooook, that's not the reaction I usually get, why did you do that?"

Zuko replied (unthinkingly), "Because I'm Fire Nation too, my name's not Lee, it's Zuko."

"Zuko, as in…**Prince** Zuko…?"

"Yes"

Zuko didn't realize the gravity of what he had just said until he saw the wide-eyed expression on Nyikani's face. "I-uh, just thought I should tell you…" he said.

"All right…" Nyikani stuttered, "I, um, I-I should…get going, you know, before more agents…show up? See you round, come on Cado." She called her lionwolf and they left, and Zuko returned home.

"How was your night, Prince Zuko?" Iroh asked. Zuko frowned and looked away, then looked back at his uncle and said quietly, "It was nice…" and started to go to his room, "How long did it take you to realize she was Fire Nation?" Zuko froze, how did his uncle know? "How did you find out?" he asked his uncle in disbelief.

"There was a lionwolf sitting outside of tea shop, and it left when she did. The wolves are strictly native to the Fire Nation, and are found nowhere else except there." Zuko stared at his uncle, how could he have been so blind? That wolf was big enough to ride!

"Well it doesn't matter; we'll never see her again."

"Why is that?"

"I told her who I was"

"You WHAT?"

"She won't tell anybody, she's a refugee like us."

"I hope you can trust this girl Prince Zuko…"

Zuko looked out the window, "I can."

**Well here's the second chapter! This is the official introduction of Nyikani, and we'll learn more about her in the next chapter, where the story will be told more from her side.**

**So…will Zuko ever see her again, and if they do meet again, will it be on good terms? Will she want to see him again? WILL you say if you liked it or how I could improve my story writing? See you next time!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Ok I've tweaked this chapter a little, I wasn't very satisfied with how it ended and made it flow a little better, and hopefully now it looks better!**

**Sorry it took so long, but Ta-Da! Chapter 3! This chapter takes place between "Tales of Ba Sing Se", and "Lake Laogai", about a week or so after Zuko finds out who Nyikani really is, more specifically during the evening. This particular story will be a little lengthy.**

**Nyikani: Ammypaint does not own A: LAB.**

**Ammypaint: Wha-hey! That's my line!**

**Nyikani: It's the disclaimer's.**

**Ammypaint: Fine whatever! Just start the story!**

Ch 3: Under the Stars

**Zuko**

"Uncle, I'm going out!" Zuko shouted as he prepared to leave.

"To where exactly?" Iroh asked his nephew.

"OUT." Zuko replied impatiently, he didn't want his uncle to know why he was in such a rush; as soon as he had both shoes on he was out the door.

Out the door and into the city, now lit up during the late evening, Zuko set out with determination, but what was he looking for? He wasn't even sure, but out of the corner of his eye he spotted what he was looking for, a quick shadow flitted down an alley, and Zuko followed. He cautiously glanced down the alley, he managed to get a glimpse of a face, Nyikani's face, she was headed somewhere, and Zuko's curiosity led him to pursue her.

Nyikani casually walked down the alley, then up a ladder through an old wood storage room, from what he could tell, she hadn't sensed him, she began walking to the door, when ***snap!*** Zuko had stepped on a twig, Nyikani froze, she stood there for what was either 2 years or 2 heartbeats, then shot off at full speed like a bolt of lightning. Zuko streamed after her, it was taking all of his energy just to keep up, _She__'__s __fast!_ He thought to himself, _like __a __wolf._ Not only was she fast but agile, she knew someone was tracking her, and Zuko knew she knew, because of the extreme route she was taking, jumping across roofs, dodging through old windows, turning corners, and all at top speed, but finally it seemed she had reached her destination.

Zuko waited a few yards back to watch where she was going, if he startled her again she'd bolt off, and he wasn't sure he had the power to chase her again, he carefully and stealthily watched as she entered a very tall building through a window near the top, then he went in after. As he got inside there was nothing but a ladder, _probably __to __the __roof._

**Nyikani**

Nyikani was panting by now, but she wore a triumphant smile, whoever that creep was following her, she had left them in the dust by now, _heh, __good __riddance! _The last thing she wanted was for someone to find her secret hideout, especially if it was a Dai Li agent. Nyikani always came to this place when she felt down, but right now she was just confused, _That __guy __said __he __was __the __Fire __Prince!_ She thought to herself, was he telling the truth? One thing was for sure, _If __he __was __he__'__s __nothing __like __his __father._ She looked up at the sky, then froze, someone was behind her, ever so slowly she inched her hand to one of her sai daggers, then whipped it out and faced the offender, the sai pointed at their throat, then Nyikani saw who it was, it was Zuko.

"L-…Zuko, what are you doing here? How did you find this place?" Nyikani asked.

"I saw you come up here, and what are **you** doing up here?" He inquired.

Nyikani gave him a stern look, "It was you following me, wasn't it? Well if you made it this far I guess I can tell you, this is my favorite place in the entire city."

"What? I thought the firelight fountain was your favorite place." Zuko said.

"I do like the firelight fountain, but this is my favorite place."

"Why?" _This __old, __decrepit __building?_

"Well the building itself isn't much, but It has one heck of a view."

Zuko looked down the building, and saw nothing but the city of Ba Sing Se, now darkened late a night. "It's just the city." He pointed out.

"Not THAT view!" Nyikani frowned, then she gently tilted his chin upwards, "**That **one." Zuko looked up to see thousands of stars sparkling in the sky, surrounding a clear crescent moon; he stood awestruck with his mouth opened. He understood why this was such a special place, he had never been this close to the moon and stars before. Nyikani smiled at his revelation, "I come here to see the stars, the moon, the constellations…"

They sat down and quietly looked at the stars together, Zuko noticed Nyikani was looking at a very bright star, "What's that?" he asked.

"That star," she replied, "Is my favorite, it's called Anaiyu, the white wolf, it's said that that star was a spiritual guide to my people."

"Who's 'your people'?"

"I'm a descendant of the Desert people."

"The Desert people?"

"Yeah, my dad always said: No matter where we were in the world, to look at Anaiyu, and remember we will always be together, no matter what." Nyikani looked at the star; she could feel the old sadness creeping into her heart, and gave a nostalgic sigh.

"So…" Zuko began cautiously, "where is your dad?"

"He's, uh, he's gone."

"Where?"

"He, died…" Nyikani stated quietly, "… He was killed."

"By who?"

"You don't want to know…"

"Why?"

"You wouldn't like the answer."

"Why not?"

"You just wouldn't!"

"How do you know?"

"Alright FINE! It was the Firelord ok? The Firelord killed my dad!" She yelled, Nyikani looked away from Zuko's shocked face, she knew he wanted an explanation. "I was 12 when it happened…" She started, "it was just me, Dad, and Cado by then. We were a small family, but we managed, until the draft came." Zuko knew she meant the draft for the war, when able-bodied men were called to join the army. "When they first came my dad turned them down."

"Why?" Zuko asked.

"Because," Nyikani replied, "He didn't want to leave me…he didn't want to leave me all alone. The next time they came they arrested him, they said refusing a draft that came directly from the Firelord was 'an act of utter disrespect.' And you what the penalty for that is…"

"Agni Kai…" Zuko said, reflecting Nyikani's thoughts, "But if your father's anything like you, then he'd be really good at that." Nyikani smiled and blushed at his compliment, but her smile quickly disappeared, she replied grimly, "Not if he isn't a firebender." Zuko fell silent, surely his father wouldn't be that cruel? But he listened on.

"It was never a fair fight, Dad tried as best he could, and I even tried to jump in the ring and help him…but he shoved me out…" Her final sentence was full of bitter sadness as she looked away and down at the city. "What happened next?" Zuko asked.

"What do you mean 'what happened'?" Nyikani snapped, "My dad pushed me out of the way and the Firelord shot him and he died! End of story!" She shouted, then sadness flooded her eyes and she turned away again, shutting her eyes as if to block out the pain, "My father died…protecting me…" She put her hands on the balcony, eyes still closed.

Zuko just stared, trying to come to terms with what he had just heard, _He __was __killed? __By __MY __father?_ He knew saying anything was useless, so he walked up to her and placed his hand on hers. Nyikani's eyes opened and she blushed and looked at Zuko, and he pulled his hand away. "Uh, s-sorry…" He stuttered. They both looked down at the city, Nyikani slowly slid her hand underneath Zuko's, and their hands intertwined.

"So, why did you come here?" Zuko asked.

"It's the safest place in the world if you're being chased by the Fire Nation, after the fight they tried to arrest me, so Cado and I came to Ba Sing Se to escape them."

"By yourself?"

"Yep, that's how things usually are, but I don't care, having to struggle and fight through life has made me strong, it's made me who I am. If I'm destined to live my life alone, then so be it, well along with Cado."

"That's how I thought for a long time, but I've been learning lately that it isn't always the best path." Zuko told her, he moved towards her.

"Not if it's the only path." Nyikani muttered. Zuko's heart ached for her, he reached out to touch her, but she pulled away. "Your better off alone anyway!" She shouted, (partially to herself), then her voice was quiet, "Nobody gets hurt…"

"I'm sorry." Zuko said, wasn't sure what else to say, "I'm sorry for what my father did to you…but I hope you know I'd never try to hurt you."

"Thanks," Nyikani mustered a small smile. "And I hope you know I don't harbor any grudge against you for…you know. To be completely honest if you hadn't told me you were the Firelord's son I never would have guessed."

"Why's that?"

"Well you're nothing like him; you don't even remotely look like him."

"I can see why…" Zuko said, putting his hand on his scar. He felt another hand gently touch his scar, and he looked up at Nyikani. "You know that isn't what I meant." She said, "You're nothing like your father because you are kind." Zuko was a little taken aback by her compliment, nobody had ever called him kind, all he had ever heard was 'traitor' or 'failure', or some other insult, and he was touched by Nyikani's statement. They just looked at eachother, Nyikani's soft eyes were reflecting the stars, and Nyikani couldn't help but feel somewhat enchanted by Zuko's, and before either of them knew it they had leaned in and kissed eachother. When they stopped Nyikani was blushing, "So, I'm guessing the feeling of affection is mutual?" She asked.

Zuko answered, "Y-yes."_ Stop stuttering!_

"It's getting pretty late, we uh, we should go, before Cado and your uncle begin to worry." Nyikani stated. They both nodded and began to part ways.

"Zuko," Nyikani called, he stopped and turned around, she walked up to him and intertwined her hand with his, she kissed him once more on the cheek, and Zuko left. Nyikani stood there for a moment; _That figures, the ONE guy I fancy and he turns out to be the Fire Prince!_ She couldn't help but smile at that statement though, she never thought anyone would fancy **her**, let alone the son of the Firelord! Her thoughts were still swirling as she headed back home to Cado.

**As you can see this is a pretty romantic chapter, for those of you who noticed Nyikani's quote "Having to struggle and figh through life has made me strong, it's made me who I am." Was the same quote Zuko said around the end of season 1. But what will happen when the white fire collides with the four elements? (A little foreshadowing there) P.S.- Can you spot where I changed the story?**

**Sokka: When do we come in?**

**Aang: Yeah how come Zuko gets all the screen time?**

**Ammypaint16: Be patient! You guys come in during the next chapter.**

**Katara: Finally!**

**It might take a while for Ch 4 so bear with me, I'll get it posted as soon as I can! **


	4. Chapter 4

**First of all, I'd like to thank everybody who favorited my story, it means alot to know that people enjoy my work!**

**Chapter 4, this one takes place between Ch3 and Lake Laogai, and the rest of the Gaang get to meet my OC! That's pretty much is for the summary.**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT own Avatar the Last Airbender or the characters, except my OC's.**

**Sokka: Ha! She owns you!**

**Nyikani: Shut it!**

**Sokka: Hahahahaaa!**

**Nyikani: SIC HIM CADO!**

***Sokka runs away with Cado in pursuit***

**Ammypaint: *Sigh* Let's get on with the story…**

Chapter 4

Katara was strolling through the marketplace in the lower ring, she, Aang, and Toph had been sent out to find some groceries while Sokka looked for information on the Earth King. "Hey look, at firework shop!" Aang exclaimed, "Let's go check it out!"

"Aang, we need to pick up some food first." Katara said.

"Aw c'mon Katara, don't be such a killjoy!" Toph teased.

Katara looked at them both and gave in, "Ok, but just for a little while."

The trio went in and looked around at the wide array of fireworks, firecrackers, rockets, and everything in between, big ones small ones, some covered in just parchment and other with elaborate paintings. Katara came across a huge rocket with a detailed dragon painted on the side, "Wow!" She reached out to touch it when-

"PLEASE DON'T TOUCH!"

"AAAH!"

The store owner had caught her, "Sorry, it's a very nice firework," Katara apologized.

"It's one of the finest works I have in the shop. I am Tama, by the way, the owner of this establishment."

"Did you make this rocket?" She asked.

"Well, I make the rockets, but my worker makes all these nice designs." Tama answered.

"Speaking of which, I just finished that order for the Tsung Tai's." A girl had overheard Katara and Tama and walked up.

"And here is the designer now! This is my employee Jen." Said Tama.

"Jen: Pyrotechnic in training." Jen extended a hand out to Katara.

"Katara: Waterbender in training, nice to meet you." She replied and shook Jen's hand.

"Ah, an _**mtawala **__**wa **__**maji.**_ (_controller __of __the __water_)"

"What?"

"Um Jen," Tama cut in, "I need you to finish up a few dragon tail firecrackers in the back."

"Oh, alright…Nice to meet you, Katara." Jen was a little surprised by this sudden order, but the urgent look on her boss's face made her obey without any questions, she headed back into the workshop and Tama followed.

Katara watched them leave and went to look for Aang and Toph, "Ok guys, we've spent enough time in here, we need to get the groceries." Aang and Toph reluctantly followed and left the shop.

(In the back of the Workshop)

Jen and Tama went into the back workshop; Tama closed the door behind them, then he turned to Nyikani, she knew he was mad about something. "Nyikani(Aka Jen)…how many times have I told you not to talk in your Desert tongue?"

Her mind clicked, _THAT__'__S __what __he __was __upset __about_, Nyikani felt a rush of guilt for letting her guard slide, "I'm sorry Tama, I didn't even notice."

"You need to pay more attention to what you're saying; you know how dangerous it is to speak in that language here. If the wrong person finds out about your past we'll really be in trouble!"

"I know…but that Water tribe girl didn't know what I was speaking."

"Maybe not but someday somebody might, and I pray that that will never happen."

"Don't worry; I'll be sure to watch what language I'm talking in."

"Good, now with that settled," A sly smile creased Tama's face, "why don't you finish up on those firecrackers?"

"Huh? I thought you just made that up!" Nyikani stated indignantly.

"No, I actually needed you to finish those."

Nyikani looked at her mentor and gave a wry smile, "Aye-aye, sir!" A salute and she was off.

"Just be careful Nyikani," Tama called, "Not everyone is as nice as that boyfriend of yours!"

Nyikani's face turned red at his statement, Tama might not have known Zuko's true identity but he knew when his apprentice fancied someone. "Yeah-yeah do you want me to finish these firecrackers or not?"

(At the Gaang's house)

Katara, Aang, and Toph had **finally** made it back to the house with the groceries. "*sigh* Finally." Katara sighed. (yet more redundance)

"What took you guys so long?" Sokka had finished his search, obviously empty-handed, and was waiting for them at the house; Katara could tell he was already irritated. "Sorry Sokka," she apologized, "We…got a little side-tracked. Did you find anything about the Earth King?"

Sokka frowned, "…No. It's like they're **trying** to keep us from finding any information!"

"That's probably because they **are**." Toph retorted.

"We need to find some way around the Dai Li agents' security." Aang pointed out.

"How? They're always watching us, and we never know where or when." Said Katara.

"Hmmm..." Sokka began thinking, then a light went off, "That's it! What if they couldn't watch us?"

"Uh...what?" Toph wasn't sure what Sokka was getting at.

"What if they couldn't watch us, because they didn't know where we were?" Sokka proposed.

Katara thought, the idea had a little promise to it, "And how exactly do we do that, Sokka?"

"Two words little sister: Smoke Bombs!"

Aang jumped in "And I know where we can get some, 'Tama's Explosives'!"

(The Gaang is on their way to 'Tama's Explosives')

"So have you even worked out a plan yet?" Katara asked Sokka.

"Well, not quite. I was thinking that maybe Toph could tell us if we're being watched, then Aang and I will throw the smoke bombs, then he and Toph dig a tunnel to somewhere else in the city!" Sokka explained, the exitement rising in his voice.

"What? How can **I** tell if we're being watched if **I** can't even see?" Toph stated.

"Can't you feel their vibrations?" Aang asked.

"Out of the other BILLION people? They feel exactly the same!" Toph threw her hands in the air in exclamation.

As they continued talking Momo hopped from Aang's shoulder and flew over to a nearby building, "What's the matter Momo?" Aang asked as he and the others chased after the lemur. Momo seemed to be leading them to what looked like a large storage building, as he stopped he landed on a window near the top of the building, and Aang hopped up to see what Momo was looking at. At first all he saw was a dark, empty building, then in the darkness a flash of fire lit up around a sillhoette of a person, Aang quickly jumped down and ran to his friends. "Guys, there's a firebender in there!"

"Probably some spy who infiltrated the city to get information for the Firelord!" Sokka growled. "Any firebender is bad news, we need to take them out!"

"So what do we do?" Asked Katara.

"Why not just ambush them?" Toph proposed.

"Perfect!" Sokka said, then he whipped out his boomerang, "All right, follow my lead."

They all crept up to the door, then on Sokka's signal Toph busted the door down and the gang leaped in, only to find nothing but dark silence, but Toph wasn't fooled, she could feel a heartbeat. Sokka stepped forward, "All right, come out!" He shouted, "We know there's a firebender in here, show yourself!" As if to answer his call a ball of white fire shot out of the shadows, Katara blocked it with a wall of water, but the heat of the fire was so intense it evaporated most of it, as she stood in surprise another white flame went out, this time Toph made a rock wall, as the fire hit the wall it began to turn red and scorched, "What kinda crazy fire is this?" Toph asked, she decided to go right to the root of the problem, and projected a rock right from beneath where the firebender was located, a small grunt was heard and the shape was sent flying towards the waiting gang, the firebender landed right in front of them, the firebender casually got up, and faced the team, their face still shrouded in the shadow, then like lightning they leaped up in the air with a ball of fire and landed, pushing the white fire into a ring and shooting it out around them, the gang jumped back in surprise, Katara retaliated by charging forward with her water turned into ice spikes, but the firebender simply incinerated them and shot a fireball at katara, as her expression turned from anger into shock, then the firebender uttered a single sentence, "_**Maji kabila ****msichana?**_(_water tribe_ _girl?_)" Suddenly the white fire disappeared.

The stranger stepped forward and revealed their face, it was Jen. Katara looked up, completely dumbfounded at this realization, _Jen's a firebender? But she seemed so nice!_ Jen took another step forward, but Katara took her fighting stance, "Stay back!" she threatened.

"What?" Jen asked, why was Katara being so defensive?

"You're a firebender!"

"So...?"

"That makes you the enemy!"

"You barely know me!" Jen stated indignantly.

"She isn't just any kind of firebender," Aang pointed out, "She's a white-firenender."

"What's that mean?" Sokka asked. Aang answered, "It means she can bend the most powerful form of fire, and the most dangerous form!"

"Right," Sokka started, he pointed his boomerang at Jen, "So why are you here? To steal information for the Firelord? Take down the Earth King? Take over Ba Sing Se?"

Jen glared at him, "To start a new life as a refugee?"

"You're lying, you must be up to something!" Sokka shouted.

"Actually she's telling the truth." Toph said. There was an akward silence, but it was interupted by a shout from Sokka, the rest of the Gaang turned around and saw Sokka on the ground, underneath a large animal, "_**Kupata mbali ya yeye, Cado.**_(_Get off of him, Cado._)" Jen commanded, and the beast obeyed. "Whoa, a lionwolf!" Aang exclaimed, he ran up to it and held out a hand for it to sniff, it licked his hand and its tail wagged. "Odd, Cado usually doesn't take to people that quickly." She then looked at Cado, "Way to show up on time pal!"

Katara confronted Jen, "So who are you?" Jen heaved a sigh, "Nyikani of the Jangwa Desert."

"I thought your name was Jen." Katara said.

"I use the name Jen because my real name is too well known."

"I've never heard of that name."

"Well you're not a fugitive hunter, bounty hunter, guard, or Fire Nation agent."

"Now that you mention it, I did see a wanted poster with that name on it." Aang mentioned, "Where did you say you were from?"

"Well I wasn't born there but my ancestry comes from the People of the Desert"

"And who are they?" Sokka asked.

Aang answered for Nyikani, "They're a race of people that live in the Jangwa Desert in the Fire Nation, it's said that they have a special connection with the wolves that live there too."

"Sounds pretty far-fetched to me." Sokka replied.

"Hey, you wanted the truth, and the truth is I am a wanted fugitive from the Fire Nation who is hiding in Ba Sing Se with my pet lionwolf."

"I didn't feel any lies!" Toph said.

Aang stared at Nyikani for a moment, then said, "She looks just like my friend Kuzon."

Nyikani froze, "Whoa wait, how do you know my grandpa's name?"

"YOU'RE Kuzon's granddaughter? He was my best friend a hundred years ago!" The rest of the gang stared at him in bewilderment.

"Wait, 100 years ago? That would mean that you're Aang right? The Avatar?"

"Yeah!" Aang replied.

"AANG!" Sokka shouted, "You just gave away your identity to a firebender!"

"You know, just because I'm from the Fire Nation doesn't mean I'm out to kill the Avatar." Nyikani stated, irritation rising in her voice. "As a matter of fact, I'm on your side of this war."

Katara's eyes narrowed, "How do we know we can trust you?"

"You tell me," replied Nyikani, "How can I prove myself to you?"

"You wouldn't by any chance know how to get around the Dai Li agents would you?" asked Toph.

"Please, I've had a long-standing rivalry with one of their cohorts ever since I got here!"

"So you do know." Toph pointed out.

"Well yes but I don't think my method would work for you guys."

"What's your 'method'?" Aang asked.

"If I sense an agent watching me I book it out of there as fast as I can, but I dodge around so they lose my trail."

"So you can sense when the Dai Li agents are watching you?" Asked Sokka.

"More like hear, but yeah."

"PERFECT!" Sokka shouted, "That's all we need for our plan to work! That and smoke bombs!"

"Well I can get you smoke bombs." Nyikani said. "Just follow me to Tama's!" The rest of the group complied and headed over to the explosives shop, when they arrived Nyikani casually took them into the back workshop, Sokka looked around, "A firebender working in an explosives shop, that sounds safe." He joked.

"WHAT?" Tama had walked in and heard Sokka's joke. Nyikani's heart sank, she had hoped Tama was still on his lunch break, "_**Kinyesi!**_" She cursed under her breath, _Now I'm gonna have to explain why they know I'm a firebender... _"Tama it's all right, they know because I told them."

"**WHAT?**" Tama exclaimed once more, "Why did you tell them?" He scolded. "Well, they kinda caught me practicing..." She confessed, she tried to look up sheepishly, but she could tell Tama was furious. "Nyikani Desoto how could you be so ignorant as to-"

"It's ok sir, we won't tell anybody," Aang cut in, "I'm Aang, the Avatar, and we came here because we need Nyikani's help." Tama looked a little bewildered, then he regained his calm, "It would be an honor to help you with anything, young Avatar. I assume Nyikani was getting some sort of explosive for you," he looked over at his now shrinking apprentice, "without my knowledge."

"I was going to tell you!"

"**After** you gave it to them?" Tama asked accusingly. Nyikani began to reply, then fell silent, he had her there. "You are very luck your friend is the Avatar," Tama started, then he smiled, "Or else I would have kicked him and his friends out and denied them the supplies they need." Nyikani's face lit up, was he letting her help them? "Now what kind of explosive are we talking about?" Nyikani couldn't contain her joy, "Thank you Tama!"

"All right sir," Sokka began, "We're looking for some smoke bombs!" And the plan began.

**So this is how Nyikani met the Gaang, next chapter will be how she and her crazy lionwolf pet settle into the group, will she ever gain their full trust? What will happen when her arch-enemy finds out? Will the Gaang ever find out who her boyfriend actually is? WILL you review and say if you liked it or what I could improve on? Ideas welcome!**

**The next chapter will be put up as soon as I can post it!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Sorry this one took so long, exams and traveling and writer's block and business tend to get in the way sometimes! Ok, this is chapter 5, Nyikani has sucessfully joined the group, but is she hiding something? Last home-made chapter before Lake Laogai.**

**Ammypaint: Take it away disclaimer!**

**Disclaimer: *clears throut* Ammypaint DOES NOT own Avatar:The last Airbender, just the OC's she created.**

**Ammypaint: Hooray! Now on with the story!**

Chapter 5

The Gaang was on their way to the cartography shop with Nyikani and Cado tagging along, everyone listened intently as Nyikani told her story of how she came to the Earth Kingdom.

"Ba Sing Se is a long way from the Fire Nation." toph pointed out.

"But it was worth it," Nyikani said, "It doesn't get much safer than this place, even the top Fire Nation general couldn't break through."

"You mean the Dragon of the West?" Toph asked.

"Yeah, how did you know that?"

Toph shrugged, "I know things."

Nyikani shrugged it off and turned to the others, "If you don't mind my asking, why are you all so intent on getting around the Dai Li agents? What is it you're trying to look for?"

Aang's expression saddened, Katara spoke up, "Aang's pet bison was stolen and we got a tip that he might be here in Ba Sing Se."

Sokka cut in, "And there's gonna be a solar eclipse this summer before Sozin's comet, and we need to tell the Earth King."

Nyikani's eyes widened in suprise, "Wow, you're busy people! But why is it so important to tell the Earth King about the solar eclipse?"

"Because," Sokka answered, "The comet will give the firebenders unlimited power-"

"I know that! What about the eclipse?"

"If you'd let me finish! The solar eclipse will leave the firebenders completely helpless, it's the perfect time to invade the Fire Nation and defeat the Firelord! But for that we need an army, if we can get the Earth King to back up our plan, we can end this war!"

"Well getting to the Earth King is way beyond my resources, but I'd like to help you anyway I can in your search for your bison."

"So does that mean...?" Toph began.

Nyikani smiled slyly, "I'm in!" Cado barked in agreement, "Cado says he wants to help too."

"What do you mean 'he says'?" Sokka asked. Nyikani looked at him, "I mean that that's what he said...I thought that was pretty clear."

"You mean you can understand him?" Aang asked.

"Yes, this goes into my peoples' special connection with the wolves, but I've spent so much time with Cado that we've developed an understanding of eachother's speech patterns."

Sokka still didn't quite get it, "...meaning...?"

Nyikani explained further, "'Meaning' **I **can understand what **he's **saying, and **he **can understand what **I'm **saying, simple as that."

"That isn't exactly normal." Katara pointed out.

"Well, then it's a good thing I'm not normal." Nyikani replied. Katara shrugged, can't argue with that logic! By this time the group had reached the cartographer's, eveyone entered and found that there was nobody there. "HELLO...!" Katara called, there was no answer. "Well this is great," Sokka said sarcastically, "There's nobody here." Nyikani looked around and noticed a cup of tea on the supposed cartographer's desk, it was still hot. "He's here, you just need to call him properly." With that she rooted around the pantheon of maps and came across a map of Ba Sing Se, "Aha! just what we needed." Then suddenly she tore a small piece of the corner, "Nyikani!" Aang shouted, "What are you doing?"

"ALL RIGHT WHO'S MESSING WITH MY MAPS!"

Everyone turned around in the direction of the noise and saw a man shuffling down from the second story of the building, "There, see?" Nyikani smiled, "You just have to know how to get his attention!" She turned to the man, "Hello Mr. Chao, we need a map."

"I expect it will be th one you just ripped!" He scolded. Nyikani replied, "Right you are! Here's the money." She handed him eight silver pieces, then turned to the rest of the gang, "All right now let's get to work!"

Time Skip!

By now the group had gone back to the Gaang's house, Aang, Katara, and Toph were kicking back while Sokka and Nyikani were looking over the map of Ba Sing Se, which now had small x's scattered over it. "All right," Sokka started, "The Dai Li agents' main lookout spots are here, here, there, here, and over there...and..." he scratched his head, "this is gonna be harder than I thought."

Nyikani, obviously amused as Sokka's confusion, leaned forward, "Now will you let me help you?"

Sokka sighed, then with his head hanging, said, "...yes..."

"Ok, the safest time to travel will be at night,"

"But won't they be expecting that?"

"Yes, which is why we're gonna do it then,** they** know **we** know that **they** are more alert at night, which means that **they **will be expecting **us** to play it safe and go during the day, they'll still be on the lookout, they just won't be expecting us as much."

"And we'll avoid the lookout spots?"

"Not quite."

"But isn't the point of knowing where **they **are is so **we **can avoid **them**?"

"Yes, but **they **know that **I **know where **they **usually are, so **they** will be expecting** me** to play it safe and steer clear of those areas, so **they **won't be where they usually are, so **we **can sneak by where **they **usually are because **they **will be expecting **us **not to do that! Makes perfect sense, right?"

Sokka thought for a moment, "Actually it does!" Katara had no such thoughts, "It'll be dangerous won't it?" she cautiously asked. Nyikani answered, "It's gonna be dangerous no matter what, it'll just be **less** dangerous. There's only one thing, what's the destination?"

"The Royal Palace." Sokka said.

"The R-...are you serious?"

"Yes."

"_**Nzuri**** huzuni!** _(_Good grief!)_" She leaned back in exclamation, then looked at everybody, "For?"

Aang answered this time, "We need to get to the Earth King somehow, Long Feng kept us from meeting him a his party, and now he has agents watching us all the time."

"Well then get ready, because this'll be a military operation of seriously stealthy proportion." Nyikani said with a sly smile.

Sokka looked at her oddly, "That made no sense, but your right, we'll be ready by sundown!"

Time Skip!

Everyone had met up in the square in the middle ring, Sokka had the smoke bombs, Nyikani had the map, and Cado had the ears, they were all set, Nyikani led the way with everyone following closely, she glanced at the map and turned down an alley, "Any agents?" Katara whispered, Nyikani whispered back, "Not yet, they're mostly around the upper ring right now, getting ready to head out." The group re-gained their silence and went along, through the upper ring, after what seemed like eons the royal palace was in sight. Nyikani stopped and the rest of the group stopped with her, "All right, for this to work we can't have any slip-us, and no loud noises, or this whole plan is sunk. Sokka, keep those smoke bombs on stand-by." The gang nodded as everyone started to walk on.

Things seemed quiet, then Cado froze, he twitched his ears, Nyikani nodded, and Cado pointed his nose at the roof of a house, Nyikani led the group down another pathway. "So far so good." Toph said. "We're not out of the fire yet." Nyikani said back, "Keep quiet." They went another hundred yards when Nyikani stopped again, Sokka and Aang looked confused, "Why are we stopping?" Sokka asked. Nyikani replied without turning around, "We're being followed, and it's not a good guy." Katara'stiffened, "Are y-"

"Shh!" Nyikani cut her off. Ever so slowly, she slid her right hand down to her sai, then fast as lightning threw up at a wall, a grunt was heard as the sai pinned a Dai Li agent to the building by his sleeve, "Sokka the bombs!" Nyikani shouted, Sokka prepared to throw them when a rock hand shot out and grabbed his wrist, "It's an ambush!" exclaimed Toph, who narrowly dodged a rock foot and retaliated at the hidden agent. Suddenly the place was alive with battle, Katara had whipped out her water and was juggling two agents with Aang, Sokka crushed a rock hand with his boomerang and threw it at another, Toph was projecting agents every which way through her earthbending, Nyikani was fiercely fighting against three Dai Li agents, she effortlessly crushed as rock foot with her claw-glove, threw a sai at another agent, dodged a rock hand, then spun around and kicked the agent in the stomach and sent him flying, and Cado was in the fray, pinning one agent down, biting another on the arm and tossing him away, leaping into the air and landing squarely on another agent, and clawing away any piece of rock that came his way.

"We can't fight them all!" Sokka yelled. Aang agreed, "Our only choice is to escape." Nyikani nodded, "You guys retreat while I hold them o-" Her sentence was cut short when a rock hand hit her across her face, she looked almost stunned for a moment, then she slowly turned around, a low rumbling emanating from deep in her throut, "That was a cheap shot Lao Che." A single Dai Li agent stepped forward, "I can only play fair for so long," his voice was gruff and sinister. "It would appear you've made some new friends." He said with interest, looking at Aang and the others, Nyikani stepped between them and the agent, "Leave them out of this, Lao! This is between you and me." Lao ignored her, "I wouldn't have thought the Avatar would trust someone like you, Nyikani." He sneered, still looking and the group.

Katara looked on, puzzled, "Nyikani, what's he talking about?" No answer, Nyikani just kept her cold stare on Lao Che, who was starting to enjoy himself, "You mean you haven't told them?" Lao asked with mock concern.

"There is nothing left for me to tell." Nyikani shot back sternly.

"Are you sure, 'Wolf Princess'?" Nyikani's eyes widened with shock and rage at this statement, but Lao kept talking, "You know why you earned that name, Nyikani, but they don't." He motioned to the group, who were still confused. "I'm warning you, Lao! Don't push your luck." Nyikani warned, (redundance! :D), the deep rumble had started again inside her throut, Aang had stepped up, "Nyikani, what does that name mean?" Nyikani looked down, "That was the name given to me when I was labeled as a wanted criminal."

"For her savage nature!" Lao stated.

"That's not true and you know it!" Nyikani shouted, she had heard enough, "I'm called that because of my heritage."

"Tell that to the man you almost killed." Everything fell silent, Nyikani looked like she was going to tear Lao to shreds, "What?" Katara's voice was full of astonishment, but also shock. Nyikani turned to the group, "Wait, you don't understand," she quietly pleaded, "He was going to kill Cado."

"And that's your excuse!" Lao shouted, "My intentions were never to take a life!" Nyikani shot back, "Only to protect one, one that means everything to me."

Then Aang understood, he didn't quite see Nyikani's point of view, but he could see what she was trying to explain. "Cado's all I have left," she went on, "After all that's happened I'll do whatever it takes to protect the ones I care about."

"Even killing?" Katara asked.

Nyikani met her eyes with a calm gaze, "If that's what the situation calls for."

"Has the situation called for it?" Sokka challenged.

"Thankfully, no." Nyikani replied, "Killing isn't my style."

"And why's that?" Lao sneered.

Nyikani looked at him coldly, "I've seen enough of it in my lifetime." With that she turned once more to the Gaang, "Let's get out of here." As they walked away Katara noticed none of the agents were trying to stop them, they just looked on.

The Gaang arrives at the House

The group managed to get back to the house, but everyone was quiet. Finally Toph spoke up, "Was Lao really telling the truth?"

Nyikani sighed, "Yes."

"But...why didn't you tell us?" Katara asked.

Nyikani looked at them, "That's something I don't really brag about. It goes into more of my heritage." Aang looked at her, puzzled, "What does that mean?"

"Well you know how you have the avatar state?" Nyikani asked, Aang nodded, "The People of the Desert share a connection with the wolves that live there, a connection so strong that we share their senses."

Sokka couldn't seem to get his around this, "...meaning...?"

"**Meaning **exactly what I said, but there's a darker side to it." The rest of the group leaned in to hear her, "These senses are often called our 'inner wolf', if we lose our temper this 'inner wolf' comes out, making us a little bit vicious, and less controlled."

"You don't turn into some two-tailed dog thing, do you?" Sokka asked. Nyikani looked at him with a deadpan expression, "...No."

"So, it's kinda like the avatar state." Toph pointed out.

"In a manner of speaking." Nyikani said. "If it happens I am able to control myself, but just barely."

"So how do we keep your 'inner wolf' **inside**?" Sokka asked.

"Easy," Nyikani replied, "Just don't piss me off."

Aang looked at her, "That's it?"

Nyikani shrugged her shoulders, "Simple as that." The her expression became a little more down, "Look, if it's all the same with you guys, I'd rather not talk about this anymore..."

Katara put her hand on Nyikani's shoulder, Nyikani's eyes lit up a little, "I think it's safe to say we should come up with a new plan." Aang jumped in, "Let's start looking for Aappa!" He exclaimed exitedly.

The rest of the group nodded, and a new plan began.

**So that's Nyikani's dark secret! It's a little complicated, so if you have questions you can ask them in the reviews or message me if you like. So stay tuned for the next chapter, what'll happen when a certain Freedom Fighter meets the Wolf Princess? Until then, please review and thanks for all the favorites!**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6, Lake Laogai, this one might be a little short, I'm only going to write the parts where Nyikani plays a significant role, if you want to know how the whole episode went, you'll have to watch it, sorry. But anyway let's get started. By the way, just a heads up, even if I don't point out that Cado is there, he is usually around Nyikani in the shop or just chilling behind her, just so you know.**

**Zuko: Am I actually in this one?**

**Ammypaint: Yes, Zuko you are actually in this one. Now disclaimer!**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own Avatar: The Last Airbender, just the OC's she created.**

Chapter 6

Zuko climbed onto the roof of a building to get a better view, but there was nothing but leaflets floating in the wind. _I know he's out there..._ While he was thinking something caught his eye, Nyikani and Cado were running across the roofs, she spotted him and started her way over. Zuko quickly hid the leaflet of the Avatar's bison, he wasn't sure how Nyikani would react to his history with Aang, considering her views on the war, _best not to drag her into it_. By now Nyikani had made her way over to Zuko and greeted him with a smile, Zuko on the other hand looked a little downcast.

"Hi," Nyikani said, then she noticed Zuko's downcast face, "What's the matter?"

"My uncle's opening up a new tea shop."

"Zuko that's great!"

"We're moving into the upper ring."

"That all sounds like good news to me."

"That means I won't get to see you."

Then it clicked, _that's why he's not happy, _Nyikani smiled and put an ecouraging hand on Zuko's arm, "Things'll work out." She told him, then she put her hand in his and intwined their fingers, Zuko managed a small smile, he wasn't sure how she did it, but Nyikani always managed to make him feel better. "You'll see." And with that she departed for work, Zuko watched her leave, then went back down to his apartment, he had work to do.

Time Skip!

(The Gaang has already found Jett and they are walking to Tama's shop)

Nyikani was busy welding/firebending the inside of some sort of explosive when the group came in, she was so emersed in her work she didn't notice their arrival, Sokka couldn't miss this kind of opportunity to get the better of her and her "wolf-senses". Ever so quietly Sokka tip-toed closer and closer, then, when he was practically on top of her...

"...HEY NYIKANI!"

"**AAAAAAGHHH!**" As Nyikani screamed she lost control of her fire and large white puffs of flame shot from her fingertips, she whirled around at Sokka, who was now doubled over in laughter. "Sokka! _**Chafu walaghai! **(dirty trickster) _Don't ever pull that again!"

"What? Did I scare the 'ninja'?"

"For the last time I'm **not **a ninja!"

Their argument was cut short by a sudden outburst from Jett, who pulled out his swords and lunged at Nyikani, but Nyikani saw it coming and quickly dodged, then like lightning she grabbed Jett by the collar and slung him into the wall, now with a sai in her free hand. "Who's your friend guys?" She asked dryly, still holding Jett by the collar, and not taking her eyes off of him.

"Jett." Katara hissed, she was furious at him for lashing out at her friend, and completely out of nowhere at that! She walked up to him as Nyikani released him. "Why did you just attack Nyikani?"

"Why **did** you just attack me?" Nyikani asked in a more puzzled tone, Jett scowled at Nyikani and pointed an accusing finger at her, "She's a **firebender**! Didn't you see?"

"Already know dude." Toph told him, Jett stared uncomprehendingly at everybody, "You knew and you're **friends** with her?" He asked in disbelief. Katara stepped forward once more, "Yes, and she's a good friend!" _A much better friend than you were._ Katara thought to herself. Nyikani looked at Jett and extended her hand in greeting, "Nyikani Desoto." Jett regarded her coldly and did not return the gesture, Nyikani ignored Jett's ignoring her, (redundance?), and turned to the rest of the gang, "I assume you have a lead on Appa?" she asked.

"Actually it's Jett that has the lead." Aang pointed out.

"Well you have excellent timing because I get off of work right about now!" Nyikani said.

"How do we know we can trust you?" Jett questioned. Katara turned on him, "We **can**! Now just take us to this 'lead' of yours!" There was an akward silence as Jett and Katara both glared at each other, then everyone began to file out, as Nyikani and Toph brought up the rear, Nyikani leaned over to Toph, "What's with them?" she asked, to which Toph simply shrugged her shoulders.

The Group has entered the warehouse Jett told them about

As everyone entered the empty room there was silence, until Aang spoke up, "...There's nothing here." he said, stating the obvious. Katara whipped around at Jett, "If this is a trap-"

"I **told **you I work nearby! Some guys were talking about some giant furry creature they had, I figured it must be Aappa." Jett snapped back, then he looked sideways at Nyikani, "Besides, I'm not the one you should be worrying about when it comes to traps."

Nyikani frowned, Jett's insults were starting to get on her nerves, _What's with him? He barely knows me and he hates my guts! _ "What's your problem, Jett?" She uncrossed her arms and pointed an accusing finger at him, "Ever since we met you've been acting like I'm the enemy."

Jett's eyes narrowed, "You're a firebender."

"What does that matter?"

"That means you **are** the enemy!"

"What?"

"Haven't you seen what your people have done, all the villages they burned, all the families they destroyed!"

"**And you think I'm not ashamed of that?**" Nyikani shouted, her statement was met with utter silence, even Jett was a little astonished, Nyikani kept talking, "My own nation calls me traitor, demon, 'wolf girl', all the other nations call me murderer, an enemy. Everywhere I go I am hated, simply because of what I am, a firebender, a fugitive, what you're spitting out at me isn't anything different from what I've already heard, and **you're** no different from any of those people. So say all you want to me, I'm still going to help my friends." Everything was silent as Nyikani and Jett stared at eachother, even Momo wasn't making any noise. After a short while Toph broke the static, "Aappa was here!"

Time Skip!

The Gaang has fallen into Long Feng's trap inside the Dai Li headquarters

Everyone was in the fray, fighting at least one agent, Katara and Sokka were fighting two, Toph was laying waste to at least 3, Nyikani and Cado were fighting alongside Jett, Smellerbee, and Longshot, all while Long Feng watched. Jett was so busy with one agent that he didn't notice that another has fired a rock hand straight at him, he turned around just in time to see a shape jump in the way and deflect it, it was Nyikani.

"Why did you help me?" Jett asked, in a more puzzled than irritated tone.

Nyikani turned around, "A friend of a friend is a friend, and I protect my friends." As soon as she finished she leaped back into the fight, and after a moment of thought Jett did the same.

Yet another Time Skip!

Jett has been mortally wounded by Long Feng and the rest of the group is around him

"You guys go and find Aappa, we'll take care of Jett." Smellerbee said.

"We're not gonna leave you." Katara told them.

"There's no time," Longshot said, "Just go, we'll take care of him; he's our leader."

Jett looked at Katara, "Don't worry Katara, I'll be fine." He smiled weakly, Katara held back her tears and stood up, then Jett spoke again, "Nyikani?"

Nyikani, somewhat confused by this summonse, stepped up. Jett looked up and extended his hand, "I don't think we ever formally greeted." Nyikani's eyes widened, then filled with sadness.

"Jett."

"...Nice to meet you." Nyikani sounded choked up and breathless as she returned the kind gesture and took is hand, then she stood up with the rest of the Gaang and left to find Aappa. As they left Toph relfected her thoughts, "He said he was gonna be fine...he was lying..."

Final Time Skip!

The Gaang has found Aappa and is flying over the lake

Katara looked into the water with teary eyes, Aang put a comforting hand on her shoulder, and everyone joined in on a group hug, while Aappa flew them away.

**I kinda just added that last part because it turned out to end on a very sad note. Tune in next time to see what happens next! (AHA! There's the redundance!) "The Earth King" may be another short chapter, but I assure you the NEXT next one will be a ringer! Review and Read please, PLUS! Nyikani's "Desert Tongue" is actually an official language, the first person to PM or tell me on the reviews which language it is will have their Avatar OC cameo in one of my next chapters!**

**Bakura: That's not really much of a prize.**

**Ammypaint: Wh- Bakura? What are you doing here, this is an ATLAB story!**

**Bakura: Oh, so I'm not allowed to read it?**

**Ammypaint: ...go away.**

**Bakura: No**

**Ammypaint: GO BACK TO MY YU-GI-OH WIP!**


	7. Chapter 7

**Ok, this chapter is also pretty short, again I didn't see the need in writing the entire episode, so I just wrote the parts with Nyikani and Cado. Anyway enjoy!**

**Ammypaint: *looks around* What, no interruptions? No fights? No unexpected cameos from Yu-Gi-Oh! characters? No arguments? Helloooo...**

**_Silence_**

**Ammypaint: YES Finally! Quick disclaimer before it's too late!**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own ATLAB, just the characters sh-**

**Sokka: Hey Ammypaint, when's the Okami crossover?**

**Ammypaint: CRAP DANG IT! I WAS THIS CLOSE! *facepalms* Just start the story...**

Chapter 7

"I missed you more than you'll ever know buddy!" Aang said as he hugged Aappa, to which Aappa licked him. Nyikani and Cado walked up, "I'm gonna take a wild guess and say that you must be Aappa!" She said as she rubbed her hand on the bison's big fluffy forehead. Cado looked up at Aappa and the two beasts sniffed each other's noses, then unexpectedly Aappa licked Cado with his enormous tongue, lifting the lionwolf into the air. Nyikani on the other hand was talking with the others,

"But now that we have Aappa, there's nothing stopping us from telling the Earth King the truth, about the conspiracy and the war." Aang said.

"See? Aang's with me! It the whole reason we came here in the first place." Sokka told Katara.

Katara thought for a moment, "Well I guess if the Earth King knew the truth, things could change."

Toph thought otherwise, "I don't trust the 'New Positive Sokka', LONG FENG BRAIN-WASHED YOU DIDN'T HE?"

Then Aang pointed out to the lake, "Look!" Everone looked and saw a small fleet of ships sailing on the water, "That's probably the Dai Li looking for us now," Sokka said, then he turned to Katara, "So?"

Katara looked Sokka with a look of serious determination, "Let's fly."

As Aappa sailed through the air Aang was steering while everone else was hanging on the back, "Can we _please_ buy a new saddle? Riding bare-back is terrifying!" Toph shouted, Katara and Sokka were too busy keeping their grip to reply, Nyikani was clearly enjoying herself, "Are you kidding? This is AMAZING!" Cado had no such thoughts, the only thing keeping him from sliding off was Nyikani's arm wrapped tightly around his mane and under his collar, and mind you, holding on to a six-hundred pound lionwolf that's almost twice your size is no easy feat, Cado's first instinct was to sink his claws into whatever was underneath him, but Nyikani had ordered him to keep them sheathed, as they were riding Aappa bare-back and lionwolf claws are very uncomfortable even with all that fur. Cado was crouched into a ball, wide-eyed, he had never liked flying in the first place!

Time Skip!

Meanwhile in Zuko's and his Uncle's apartment...

"You did the right thing, letting the Avatar's bison go free." Iroh said, Zuko had barely heard his uncle, he didn't feel right, "...I don't feel right..." (redundance! :D) His vision blurred and faded as he passed out on the floor, "**Zuko!**"

Meanwhile happening at the EXACT same time...

Aang and the gang were storming the Earth King's palace.

Everything was complete and utter chaos, soldiers literally flying through the air, rocks going everwhere, roaring, shouting, water, air, boomerangs clanking and clinging of metal weapons, Nyikani was completely submerged in battle, when suddenly a weird feeling came over her, she felt dizzy, and a sense of foreboding or anxiety came over her, something wasn't right, but what? She suddenly noticed that Katara was staring at her with with a mix of concern and curiosity, "Are you ok?" She asked, Nyikani looked at her sideways, "It's nothing. Come on, we're almost there!"

Smaller Time Skip!

The Gaang is on the train with the Earth King

"So you've never been outside the Upper Ring before?" Katara asked the Earth King.

"I've never been outside the palace," Then the Earth King looked out the window at Aang and Aappa, "Now **that's** the way to travel!"

Katara noticed Nyikani staring out the window, she had been acting funny ever since they confronted the Earth King, "You know, you've been acting weird lately."

Nyikani looked at her and smiled reassuringly, "I'm fine, there's just something I need to check up on."

"Wait, so you're not coming with us?"

"Only as far as the next stop."

Katara looked a little down, "Ok..."

"Don't worry, I'll meet up with you guys later."

Ok I think this is the final Time Skip!

Setting: Zuko and Iroh's apartment

Iroh was brewing some tea when he heard a knock on the door, he went to answer it, it was Nyikani.

"Hello, Iroh." Nyikani said as she bowed respectully, "I apologize for coming so unexpectedly."

"It is a pleasant suprise, please come in." Nyikani came in and they both sat down at the table, Iroh brought her a cup of tea, "What brings you here?"

"This may sound odd," Nyikani began, "But I felt like I needed to come here."

"That is odd..." Iroh said, Nyikani expression became worried, "Why, is everything allright?" She asked.

"Not quite, I'm afraid my nephew has become very sick." Then he looked at Nyikani, he lifted one eyebrow and smiled, "It is odd that you would feel the need to come here so quickly after it happened."

"Well I-I didn't k-know...I just-uh..." Nyikani stuttered, her cheeks were turning red, then regained control of herself, "How is he?"

Iroh sipped his tea calmly, "Zuko will be better in time, but for now he is not feeling well." He told Nyikani while looking at is teacup.

"If you need help I'd be happy to come before work." Nyikani said.

Iroh smiled, "That is very kind of you."

"May I go see him?"

"Yes," Iroh said, then he smiled again, "perhaps seeing you will make him feel better." Nyikani blushed again, then she got up and went into Zuko's room. When she entered Zuko was laying on his back under the covers, he was even paler than usual and seemed to be in a painful sleep because he would moan from time to time, _he's really sick... _She went up to him and knelt down, then she leaned over and gently kissed him on his forehead. Zuko slowly woke up and half-opened his eyes, he looked over and saw that Nyikani was sitting next to him, usually he would have said something, but right now he couldn't even muster a word, "I heard you weren't feeling well." Nyikani said, again Zuko was too sick to speak so he only mustered a small smile, but by Nyikani's face he could tell she wasn't really convinced, so he slid his hand over hers, and instinctively she intwined her fingers with his, this gesture always gave Nyikani some reassurance, and she smiled. "I'll let you get some rest." She said and she rose and left.

She had said goodbye to Iroh and was on her way to work with Cado walking placidly beside her, _I wonder how the others are doing..._

**Yep that's pretty much it, if you haven't already guessed Nyikani is thinking this while Toph is being capture, Sokka and Aang are leaving, and Azula and her little group have infiltrated Ba Sing Se. Next chapter should be better, get ready "The Guru/Crossroads of Destiny", because some serious crap is gonna go down! Until then, read and review!**


	8. Chapter 8

**All right, this chapter took a heck of alot of work! This chapter takes place during the Season 2 Finale, "The Guru/Crossroads of Destiny", there is a fair amount of skipping, again I only write the parts where Nyikani comes in, but hopefully I made things clear enough. ENJOY! Now Disclaimer, would you be so kind?**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own Avatar: The Last Airbender, just the OC's she has created.**

Ok, before chapter 8 begins, I need to clarify a few things and also give a little filler, Hooray! Ok let's get started.

Nyikani has explained her "Inner Wolf" nature, where her wild instincts take over, to further explain this, I kinda left out an important piece of information, Cado's species, the Lionwolf, is one of three species called the Wolf Hybrids. The first is the Leopardwolf, the most agile, quick, and smallest, and also known to be the most beautiful, with their lithe feline bodies with a golden coat and leopard rosettes, and piercing amber eyes. The second is the Lionwolf, known to be the noblest and most intelligent of the three hybrids, the males have the lion's mane, females do not, but most lionwolves are a tan with a slight red tint to the color, with the manes being a darker shade. The third and final species is the Tigerwolf, known to be the biggest, strongest, and also the most ferocious, they are orange with the traditional black stripes going all the way down to their wolf tails, it was also said that during the early years of the war Fire Nation soldiers rode them like cavalry. All have a wolf head, cat bodies, and a wolf tail, along with the cat marking of their species.

Now, in the Jangwa Desert, the people there, (as I have previously stated), have a special connection to the wolves that share their home, and each warrior has a "Spirit Wolf", basically the hybrid that they are most alike to, Nyikani's is the leopardwolf, which is why she is agile and when her anger boils over a deep rumbling emanates from her throat, (much like a leopard growl), so when her inner wolf comes out, she acts more like a leopardwolf, oh and by the way her claw-glove she wears on her right hand is called a Shuko.

Hopefully this will help things make more sense, and with that, ON TO THE STORY!

Chapter 8

During part 1, "The Guru"

"I'll get these scrolls to him right away. Thank you, General Hao." Katara said as she and Momo left the meeting. She'd get the scrolls to the Earth King, but first she had to stop by a few places. Mainly Tama's.

When she arrived Nyikani was wrapping up a set of Bakugami Rockets, and she turned around and saw Katara, "Hey! Where have you guys been?" Nyikani asked.

"I could ask you the same thing!" Katara shot back, but with a friendly tone.

"After I left you guys at the train station I haven't seen you since."

"Well I'm the only one in the city, everyone else left."

"Where?"

"Aang went to see a Guru at the Eastern Air Temple, and he's dropping Sokka off at Chameleon Bay, and I guess Toph is in the city to see her mom, but I haven't heard from her."

"Why is Aang seeing this Guru?"

"He said he could help Aang master the Avatar state, and he needs to be as ready as possible before the invasion."

"Interesting, so why's Sokka going to Chameleon Bay?"

"He's going to see our dad."

"That's great! But why aren't you going? Don't you want to see your dad too?"

"I do, but someone had to stay here and help plan the invasion with the Earth King, so I decided to stay." Katara finished, then she added, "So where have **you** been?"

"A friend of mine's been sick, so I was helping his uncle take care of him."

"Oh," Katara said, "Is he doing better?"

"He's back on his feet." Nyikani said with a smile, "His uncle just opened a new tea shop today and I'm gonna go see it when I'm off work."

"That sounds like fun, but I really should be getting to the Earth King."

"All right. See you round!"

Time Skip!

Zuko, Iroh, and Nyikani are cleaning up the tea shop after hours

A strange man came into the tea shop with a scroll and presented it to Iroh, "A message from the Royal Palace." Then he left.

Iroh looked over the scroll, "I…I can't believe it!" He exclaimed.

Zuko and Nyikani walked up, "What is it, Uncle?" Zuko asked.

"Great news," Iroh began, "We have been invited to serve tea, to the Earth King!" He lifted the scroll in the air in excitement then went off. Zuko watched him leave and smiled.

"Wow." Nyikani said, "Things couldn't get much better for you!" She stated with a little laugh in her tone. Zuko smiled at her, then he slowly slipped his hand over hers and entwined their fingers, "I don't think they could." He said, Nyikani looked down and blushed, then she turned around at an impatient whine from Cado, "Don't worry I'm coming." She told him, then she looked at Zuko again, he seemed different, but, in a good way, "I have to get to my night shift, good bye." She smiled once more and headed out.

Time Skip!

During Part 2: Crossroads of Destiny

Azula has just briefed the Dai Li agents which are now under her control

"Nice speech Azula," Tai Lee said, "It was pretty and poetic but also scary in a good way!"

"Yeah, I thought you were gonna make that one guy pee his pants!" Mei added.

"There are still a few loose ends," Azula said, "Like the Avatar, and my brother and uncle…"

"I apologize for the interruption, Princess." Said a voice, the girls turned around and saw a Dai Li agent bowing, then he stood up, it was Lao.

"What is it?" Azula asked.

"There is one more 'loose end' you should know about."

"And who is this loose end?"

"A criminal called Nyikani, her name should be well known in the Fire Nation, I am asking for your assistance in her capture."

Another Time Skip!

Aang, Toph, and Sokka are flying back to Ba Sing Se

"Aang, are you ok?" Sokka asked.

"I'm great; it went great with the Guru!" Aang lied, "I completely mastered the Avatar State, hehe…he…yeah."

**Meanwhile happening a little while later…**

"You're so dramatic, brother. What, are you going to challenge me to an Agni Kai?" Azula sneered.

"Yes. **I challenge you!**" Zuko shouted.

"No thanks." Azula told him, but Zuko attacked anyway, firing a large ball of fire at her, but the Dai Li agents blocked it, and pinned his feet down, they had him.

**Sometime later, again…**

Nyikani and Cado were walking down an alley on their way home, little did they know there were two Dai Li agents watching, and Lao was one of them. Ever so quietly they each put a little bamboo tube to their mouths, then shot two darts each, there was a grunt and a yelp, then a thud.

Skip!

"There's no one else here." Toph pointed out.

"Katara **is** in trouble! I knew it!" Aang said.

"Wait," Toph said, then she pointed to the door, "Someone's at the door." Right on cue there was a knock on the door, "Actually, it's an old friend of mine." Toph casually answered the door to reveal Iroh, "Glad to see you're ok!" She said.

"I need your help." Iroh pleaded.

"You guys _know_ each other?" Aang asked in disbelief.

"I met him in the woods once and knocked him down," Toph explained, "Then he gave me tea and some very good advice."

"May I come in?" Iroh asked, Toph nodded, Iroh entered and turned to everyone, "Princess Azula is here in Ba Sing Se."

"She must have Katara!" Aang said.

"She has captured my nephew as well."

"Then we'll work together to fight Azula, and save Katara and Zuko." Aang concluded.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Sokka said, "You lost me at _Zuko_."

"I know how you must feel about my nephew…" Iroh said to Sokka, then he reassuringly put his hands on Sokka's shoulders, "But believe me when I tell you there is good inside him."

Sokka pushed Iroh's hands off, "Good inside him isn't enough, why don't you come back when it's **outside** him too!"

"Katara's in trouble," Aang told Sokka, "All of Ba Sing Se is in trouble, working together is our best chance." Sokka sighed and nodded his approval. Iroh began walking out the door, "I brought someone along who might be able to help us." Everyone went outside to see a Dai Li agent tied up, Toph wasted no time earthbending a chair to interrogate him in, but before they began questioning him Cado ran up to the house barking frantically.

Iroh and Aang in unison: "Cado?"

Then Iroh looked at Aang, "You are familiar with this animal?"

Aang nodded, "He belongs to a friend of ours."

"I was about to say the same thing."

"So you know Nyikani?" Aang asked. Iroh nodded, "She and my nephew are very close."

"Ok, this is getting weird." Sokka said. Toph stepped in, "So does anyone know why Cado's here all by himself?"

"She could've been captured too," Aang thought out loud, then he looked at Cado, "Was Nyikani captured?" Cado moved his head up and down in an attempt to nod yes.

"And I bet this guy can tell us where everybody is!" Sokka said, staring at the Dai Li agent, Iroh went up and uncovered his mouth, "Azula and Long Feng are plotting a coup, they're going to overthrow the Earth King!" The agent said hastily.

"My sister, where are they keeping Katara?" Sokka demanded.

"In the Crystal Catacombs of Old Ba Sing Se, deep beneath the palace." Said the agent once more. That was all they needed to know, and they were off.

**A little later outside the Royal Palace**

Toph had her hand on the ground in concentration, "Well waddaya know, there is an ancient city down there, but it's deep." As she said this she bended a tunnel down into the earth.

"We should split up," Sokka started, "Aang, you go with Iroh and look for Katara, Nyikani, and the angry jerk," he then turned to Iroh, "No offense."

"None taken."

"And I'll go with Toph to warn the Earth King about Azula's coup."

As everyone began to split up Aang and Iroh turned around to see that Cado was already at the entrance to the tunnel, looking at them with a "_Come on, let's go!"_look in his eyes.

Ok hopefully this will be the final Time Skip

Katara and Zuko are talking in the Catacombs

"But lately, I've realized I'm free to determine my own destiny," Zuko said, "Even I I'll never be free of my mark."

"Maybe you could be free of it." Katara said.

Zuko turned around in surprise, "What?"

"I have healing abilities."

"It's a scar," Zuko pointed out bluntly, "It can't be healed."

Katara took something from around her neck and showed it to Zuko, "This is water from the Spirit Oasis at the North Pole, it has special properties…so I've been saving it for something important, I don't know if it would work…but…" As she said this Zuko closed his eyes as if to let her try, but before she did they both heard a huge commotion coming from the tunnel the Dai Li threw them into, there was crashing and several men yelling,

"Quick!"

"Don't let her get away!"

"Get the tunnel!"

Then the tunnel door opened, but to both Katara and Zuko's surprise a Dai Li agent came tumbling down, but everything was clear when the second person was thrown in, a female shape was tossed down and landed with a grunt, it was Nyikani, as the agent stood up and dusted himself off he shouted at her, "And STAY down here you little rat!"

"**_Mbweha uso!_**" (Fox-face) Nyikani shouted back as the agent left, then she turned around to see Zuko and Katara staring at her.

Zuko and Katara in unison: "Nyikani?" Then they looked at each other in shock, "Wait, how do YOU know her?" They said again in unison. Then they both looked at Nyikani, obviously wanting an explanation.

"Ok, Katara is my friend." She told Zuko, then she turned to Katara, "Zuko is my boyfriend."

"Why didn't you tell me?" Katara asked, Nyikani looked at her with a deadpan face, "'Katara, meet my boyfriend Lee, who just happens to look exactly like Prince Zuko of the Fire Nation whom you'd probably recognize.'" Then she became more serious, "Look, I just wasn't sure how either of you guys would react."

Katara and Zuko backed off; Katara could understand how that could easily backfire, "So how did you get captured?" She said in an attempt to change the subject.

"The Dai Li got a new toy." Nyikani said, then she reached to the back of her neck and pulled out what appeared to be a dart, "Shirshu spit darts, but they weren't smart enough to hit me with more than two."

"But doesn't shirshu spit paralyze you?" Katara asked.

"Yes, but I had an old trick up my sleeve." Nyikani replied with a mischievous smile.

"What trick?" Zuko asked.

"Shirshu spit paralyzes you if it gets into your bloodstream, so if you make your heartbeat faster, the poison will pass through your blood faster, making it wear off quicker." Nyikani explained, then she turned to Zuko, "By the way, I met your sister. I don't think she likes me very much."

"Azula doesn't like anybody."

Katara looked puzzled, "Where's Cado?"

"Well one fatal mistake Azula made was leaving Cado behind; she didn't think he'd pose a threat without me." As she said this there was a huge crash on the other side of the cave, a huge hole in the wall appeared and Cado ran out of it. "Cado!" Nyikani exclaimed, Cado ran up to her and Nyikani wrapped her arms around his mane while he wagged his tail happily. While Cado and Nyikani reunited Katara had found Aang.

"Aang!" Katara ran up and hugged him, "I knew you'd come!"

Aang gladly embraced Katara but gave Zuko a dirty look over Katara's shoulder, Zuko glared back but was surprised to see Iroh hugging him. "Uncle," he said, "I don't understand, what are you doing with the Avatar?"

"Saving you, that's what." Aang said. Zuko lunged at him but Iroh held him back, "Zuko, it's time we talked." He then turned to the others, "Go help your other friends; we'll catch up with you."

Aang bowed respectfully, then he and Katara left, Nyikani was about to leave too when Zuko caught her wrist, she turned around and looked at him, his face told her he didn't want her to go, but she needed to help her friends, Nyikani looked him in the eye, then kissed him on his left cheek, then as she left she looked back once more, then disappeared with Cado at her side.

Aang, Katara, and Nyikani were running across the catacombs, "We've gotta find Sokka and Toph!" Katara said, as she finished a ball of blue flame appeared, Aang rose a rock wall that just barely held it back, it was Azula. Katara quickly retaliated by forcing a surge of water at her, but Azula deflected in, then in the steam she launched herself off a crystal and into the air, shooting fireballs the entire time, Aang and Katara blocked them with a wall of water, Nyikani leaped over the wall and countered with her own fire, as Azula barely dodged the white flames Aang caused the column she was standing on to crumble, Azula slipped for just a moment, and landed cornered by all three benders, (Cado was kinda just watching at this point…), for the first time Azula looked uncertain, with two arms pointed at Aang and Katara, she was still vulnerable to Nyikani and her lionwolf. When a fireball came out of nowhere and interrupted the fight, it was Zuko.

As Zuko stepped up he kept his aim on Azula. Nyikani smiled, surely he would help them, but her smile turned to a look of horror as he whipped around and attacked Aang, she was about to defend Aang when a rock hand came out of nowhere and nearly hit her in the head, she didn't even need to turn around to see who it was, she already knew. Nyikani whipped around like lightning and shot a fireball at the agent, "What do you want, Lao?" She asked bitterly. Lao smiled wickedly, "You shouldn't ask a question you already know the answer to." And with that he attacked with another rock hand, but Nyikani destroyed it with one swipe of her shuko, Lao attempted to lung at her but Cado rammed him and pinned him down, but only for an instant, for he propelled Cado in the air by launching a rock pillar at the lionwolf's stomach, but Cado landed on his feet and was back in the fray.

Nyikani was growing impatient, she whipped out her sai daggers, Lao answered by breaking off shards of crystal and using them like knives, while knife-battling each still used their bending, Lao was ducking and dodging Cado and firing off rock hands and feet, while Nyikani was jumping and lunging and shooting a fireball or wall of white fire here and there, all while the clanking of their weapons sounded out.

While also fighting Katara Azula noticed Nyikani juggling Lao, this would be the perfect opportunity to catch her off guard; she waited for just the right moment…there! She had both hands up shooting a fireball; Azula took advantage of this and launched a blue wall of flame at Nyikani. Nyikani saw it just in time and blocked with a firewall of her own, as the attack was deflected she quickly turned around to engage Lao again when- "Uh!"

The entire world seemed to stop…Nyikani wore an expression of shock and surprise, a pain surged through her, she looked down to see a crystal shard…on her? No, it was _in_ her, for Lao had stabbed her in the stomach, she stared at the ground in front of her and sank to her knees, still clutching the lower right of her stomach. Katara looked in terror as Lao stood over her wounded friend, a sadistic smile on his face, "Looks like you're done." He sneered; he reached down to take hold of her shoulder, but was stopped abruptly by Nyikani's hand grabbing his wrist. "You could not be farther from the truth…" Nyikani said quietly, but there was power in her voice. Katara had learned that when Nyikani was angry, her speech became very proper, and when in rage she slipped back into her native tongue.

"You may have tried to kill me…" Nyikani went on, as she did her grip on Lao's wrist tightened, fear grew in his eyes as he realized that he was no longer being restrained by a young girl, he was in the vice grip of a warrior's much like the terrible jaws of a wolf, "But you have just **pissed. me. off.**" Nyikani rose up, then looked Lao straight in the eye, Lao froze in fear as Nyikani's eyes had shifted, her pupils had shrunk revealing her burning gold eyes, he was staring into the eyes of a beast.

"**_Kuwa alifanya makosa ya kutisha!_**" (You have made a terrible mistake). A familiar rumbling had begun in her throat; she reached down, took the crystal shard in her hand, pulled it out, and tossed it aside. Nyikani felt a new surge of energy course through her, her inner wolf had just come out. Lao tried in vain to fire a rock at her, Nyikani just jumped out of the way, she was about to retaliate when she saw Katara and Zuko in an all-out war, and Katara was losing.

"I thought you had **changed!**" Katara shouted.

"I **have** changed." Zuko said, he was bending the flames like whips and slung them at Katara, right before the fire reached her another flame whip appeared and sliced Zuko's in half, it was Nyikani. Both were in the heat of battle, they had sparred in the past but this was far different, this fighting was not out of fun and much more vicious, and even with her injury Nyikani was as strong as ever, Zuko had wondered just how powerful her wolf side was, now he could see that even with a serious stab wound in her stomach Nyikani was still winning. She was closing the gap between them, Zuko had to resort to shooting fireballs directly at Nyikani, she dissolved them with her white fire, finally they were fighting almost hand to hand, Zuko made an effort to get her off balance but Nyikani bended back, out of the way of the fire, then spun around and knocked Zuko off his feet, he hit the ground with a thud, Nyikani was about to fire, but she stopped. Zuko looked up, behind the fire in Nyikani's eyes there was uncertainty, he realized she was having an inner battle, her instincts were telling her to strike, but her mind and heart were holding her back. Zuko realized she didn't want to fight him, and he didn't want to fight her, Nyikani lowered her arm and stepped back, her eyes now filled with sadness, but only for an instant, as she stepped back a rock hand seized her arm, she was yanked over to Lao.

"You just don't know when to **quit**, do you?" He growled.

"**_Wala hana._**" (Neither does he) She told him with a side smile, Lao whipped around just in time to see Cado grab his arm and throw him away from Nyikani, who had engaged Azula.

"So, what's it like being an outsider?" Azula asked Nyikani, that taunting tone in her voice.

"Not bad." Nyikani replied coolly.

Azula frowned, "Being hated by your whole country?"

"Doesn't bother me."

"Having no family?"

"I have a family." Nyikani stated sternly, "Even if it's just one."

Their fight continued, Azula's usual tactic was to get into her enemy's head and anger them, but everything she spat at Nyikani would be brushed right off the girl's shoulder. Nyikani was holding her own against Azula while Katara battled Zuko and Cado was keeping Lao occupied; Aang was nowhere to be seen. Nyikani was keeping up, but for how long? The adrenaline was beginning to wear off, the pain was starting to burn even more, she quickly put her hand on the wound, when she took it off there was blood smudged on her hand, she could feel her energy draining out. **_No_**_, _she thought, _I have to keep going, just a little longer! _Nyikani soldiered on, Azula shot a huge fireball at her, she managed to block it, but as she did she felt herself stumble somewhat, she couldn't let Azula get her while she was weak.

Cado was making an absolute fool out of Lao, nimbly hopping out of the way of any rocks launched at him, or simply clawing them away, Lao was doing everything in his power to keep his face from getting another scratch from Cado's razor sharp claws. The entire time Cado was only half-paying attention, keeping one eye on Nyikani just in case, and the other on the ever frustrated Lao, but both turned around at the sound of a large explosion, there was a cloud of smoke where Nyikani and Azula had been fighting.

As the smoke cleared it was obvious that that explosion had taken a lot of effort from both Nyikani and Azula. Azula looked somewhat winded, panting, but retook her fighting stance. Nyikani was working off of her last reserves of energy, even in her wolf-mode the injury was taking its toll on her, she was panting hard, and with a slight grunt she fell on one knee. Now was her chance! Quick as a striking serpent Azula shot a wall of fire at Nyikani.

Everything seemed to move in slow motion, Nyikani saw the oncoming attack along with her possible end, then an idea hatched in her head, it would take exact timing, but she might be able to pull it off, _This might just work… _Quickly Nyikani stood up to face the inferno, then, with every last shred of her diminishing strength, she took control of the fire, she turned a full three-sixty and fired it right back at Azula, who was too shocked for words. As Nyikani began to smile in victory something happened, all of a sudden the fireball was deflected and another one came straight at her, to her horror she saw who had attacked, it was Zuko.

Nyikani was too shocked and exhausted to see it coming, she attempted a feeble defense, but it was far too late, she took the full force of the fireball, the force was so strong that she flew back, slamming against a wall of crystals, which shattered on impact, Nyikani managed to land on her feet, her arms hung down, her hands still gripping her sai daggers, she looked up, panting, her eyes still burned like a fiery leopardwolf's, still wearing a look of pure, hateful, defiance; then, she dropped her daggers, her eyes closed, and she collapsed on the ground, and didn't get up.

Zuko didn't realize his actions until he saw Nyikani lying on the ground, he started to rush to her side, but Cado got there first. Cado whined and nudged Nyikani's face, no answer; with sadness in his eyes he gently licked her cheek.

"…cado…" Nyikani said quietly, Cado's ears perked up, Nyikani opened her eyes weakly, she seemed to be staring at something far off; or nothing at all. Cado looked at her expectantly.

"…I need you to go help Katara." She said, Cado flattened his ears and whimpered, like a puppy that had been scolded, he shook his head. Nyikani put her hand on his cheek and attempted to push him away, Cado pushed back, pressing his face against her hand. Nyikani could read his eyes, _"No, I cannot leave you!"_ they pleaded.

Nyikani looked him in the eye. "**_…hiyo…ni ili…_**" (that's an order) Cado's head sunk, he knew better than to disobey orders.

"…Nyikani…" A voice said, Cado's ears shot up, then flattened, a deep growl echoed in his chest, he slowly turned around, with the meanest, angriest, ugliest snarl ever seen on the face of any canine, for he knew exactly whose voice that was, Zuko's. Then like a bolt of lightning he charged, he would silence this traitor, who had hurt his precious human and betrayed her trust. It was his sworn duty to protect his master at any cost, Zuko would pay.

While this was happening Katara had already been felled, and Aang had reappeared, also rushing in on a rock, but before he reached Zuko and Azula his rock was destroyed underneath him, the rest of the Dai Li agents had arrived, not that Cado had noticed. The lionwolf was still locked on Zuko, who was still in a daze at what he had just done, the gap was closing, then all of a sudden something tripped him, he fell with such force that he turned a complete 180 degrees and landed on his back. Cado quickly got up and looked to see one of his forepaws entrapped in crystal, no doubt this was Lao's doing! Cado freed himself and turned his attention to Lao, who was wearing a smug grin, the lionwolf lunged, fighting like he usually does, but ten times more vicious.

Aang picked himself up and surveyed the situation, Katara was surrounded by agents and protecting herself with a fortress of water, whips at the ready, Cado was fighting as hard as ever but being pushed back by Lao and other Dai Li men, worst of all was Nyikani, she was leaning against a crystal column, struggling to even stand, with her left hand still clutching her right side, barley conscious, her bangs were in the way of her eyes and Aang couldn't see her expression, but he was sure there was pain in it, and he himself wasn't well off either, he had both Azula and Zuko to deal with along with his own small army of Dai Li agents, things were looking bleak. "There's too many…" He said to himself, _"The only way, is to let her go." _Guru Pathik's words echoed in his mind, he knew what had to be done, "I'm sorry, Katara…" Aang said quietly, and then he shielded himself with a crystal tent and sat down, letting the pure cosmic energy flow through him as he released his final chakra.

Everyone stepped back as the crystal fortress started to glow, the agents completely forgot about Cado, who had returned to Nyikani's side. Suddenly the crystals shattered, and Aang rose up into the air. Nyikani looked in wonder, could this truly be what she thought it was? _Am I seeing the Avatar State?_ A small smile appeared on her weary and tired face, even with her bangs in the way she could see that Aang had done it; he might just win this fight.

Katara looked on hopefully; Aang truly had mastered the Avatar State. Suddenly the world seemed to freeze, everything shattered as Katara saw Aang fall, for Azula had stuck him in the back. Nyikani could only gasp, Katara's mouth dropped and tears flooded her eyes, her water swirled around her, then she formed it into a great wave, rushing at Zuko and the agents, washing them away, when the water drained away Katara was left, holding Aang, tears still streaming in her eyes. Azula and Zuko walked up, they had already won, as they prepared to take care of Katara they both reeled back in surprise when a fireball came out of nowhere, Iroh had returned.

"You've got to get out of here!" Iroh shouted at Katara, "I'll hold them off as long as I can!" As he said this he shot several fireballs and dodged several rocks from the Dai Li, Cado looked at Nyikani, who gave him a small nod, then with a thunderous roar he leaped on the group of agents. Cado was still in his rage, and he fought with the intention of drawing blood, (but not to kill), he sunk his teeth into one agent's leg, then whirled around and clawed the arm of another, all while keeping one eye on the main target, Zuko.

Azula was getting ready to engage Iroh, but yet another blast of fire got in the way, white fire. She turned around to see Nyikani, still leaning up against the crystal column, left hand still on her wound, she could see her eyes burning through her bangs, "I'm not done with you, Azula." Nyikani snarled, she attempted to attack with her white fire again, but this time a burning pain stopped her, it felt like she was being stabbed in the stomach with a bolt of lightning, something was terribly wrong.

Azula kept her attention on Iroh, while only paying little heed to Nyikani. Zuko was watching Cado tear through the lines of the Dai Li, but it was short-lived. While all this was happening Katara got ready to escape but turned around. Nyikani knew exactly what she was thinking, "There's isn't any time, just get Aang and get out of here!" She demanded.

Katara looked in desperation, she couldn't just leave her best friend to be captured, "I'm not gonna leave you!-"

"**I'M NOT ASKING!** NOW GO!" Nyikani yelled. Katara flinched at her harsh words. Then she looked at Katara with a steady (but still exhausted) gaze, "Our paths will cross again."

Katara looked distraught, but nodded, and with a stream of water she escaped with Aang, Nyikani watched them go, then with a smile of hope she sank to her knees and was captured. Cado on the other hand…

The lionwolf was in a frenzy by the time the Dai Li agents pinned him, trapping him in a prison of crystal, his body was encased but his head still whipped around at his enemies, snarling and snapping. Zuko watched Cado's capture, and for a half second Cado looked straight in Zuko's eyes, he looked on fearfully, for in Cado's eyes there burned pure hate. With his teeth bared and his face spattered with blood Cado looked less like a noble lionwolf and more like a hideous demon expelled from the Spirit World, but Lao did not seemed impressed, he walked up to Cado with a smug grin, "You and your girl are finished, mutt." He sneered.

Cado growled, _"Arrogant man! Sleep in fear, for the last thing you will see in this world are my fangs." _

Lao's smile shrank somewhat, he could not speak the tongue of wolves, but a threat is a threat no matter what language, he turned to Nyikani, who was also up to her neck in crystal, "Well are you gonna tell me what your little dog is spitting at me?" Nyikani looked at him with tired eyes, she noticed that Lao looked a little shaken, "I don't have to," She said, then a little realization appeared in her eyes, "You already know."

It was a heart-breaking (no pun intended) end to an epic battle, Iroh and Cado had been detained, and Nyikani was too weak to even resist capture. As Zuko looked on he felt worse and worse, he looked at his uncle, who looked away, he looked at Cado, who fixed him with a malicious glare, but worst of all, he looked at Nyikani, who didn't even bother to look back. His heart sank, he had betrayed all of them, he promised Nyikani that he would never hurt her, and ended up injuring her to the possibility of dying. He would've liked to take her home to the Fire Nation with him, but he doubted she would want to even see him after what he had done. Zuko took one last look, then left with Azula.

Meanwhile…

The Gaang, (along with the Earth King and Basco), were all flying away on Aappa, Katara laid Aang down and pulled out the spirit water, it began to swirl around and glow, Katara exposed the burn wound on Aang's back and the spirit water seeped into it, but nothing happened. Katara cried and wrapped her arms around him, suddenly Aang's tattoos flashed for a brief second, then he woke up, he smiled weakly at Katara, who again hugged him, but this time out of joy and relief.

The Earth King looked down at his kingdom, "The Earth Kingdom…has fallen."

**Fingers...hurt...from...so. much. typing! So this is a very intense chapter, there isn't much else to say. So...will Nyikani survive? Will Zuko ever see her again? WILL she ever find the Gaang again? Read and review please!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Yes! Chapter 9, which is the beginning of Seaon 3, which begins with Episode 1 "The Awakening", which begins with Aang's realization that all of his friends are in a Fire Nation ship...ok I'm done. Yet again more skipping, but I'm working on a better solution. Disclaimer?**

***no answer***

**Ammypaint: C'mon I know it's been a while, but you're still there right?**

***still no answer***

**Ammypaint: *sigh* Fine... A-a-hem! I DO NOT own Avatar: The Last Airbender, just the OC's I have created.**

**Bakura: If they're still alive that is.**

**Ammypaint: SHUT UP BAKURA!**

**Chapter 9**

"Twinkle toes, that's gotta be you!" Toph exclaimed, she and Katara ran over to Aang, who was still in a daze.

"Aang you're awake!" Katara said.

"Are you sure…? It feels like I'm dreaming…" Aang said tiredly.

Katara walked up and hugged him, "You're not dreaming," she told him, "You're finally awake."

"Aang! Good to see you back with the living buddy!" Sokka said as he walked up, Aang had to double-take, was Sokka wearing a…_Fire Nation Uniform!_ "…Sokka?" Aang said in a puzzled manor, he could feel himself starting to get light-headed.

Toph: "Uh-oh somebody catch him he's gonna-"

***thud!***

**Meanwhile…**

Zuko was staring up at the moon, he was also on a ship, but this ship was heading for the Fire nation. All was silent until Mei came up behind him, "Aren't you cold?" She asked.

"I've got a lot on my mind," Zuko said, "It's been so long, over three years since I was home. I wonder what's changed…I wonder how _I've _changed…"

Mei yawned with disinterest, "I just asked if you were cold, I didn't ask for your whole life story."

Zuko frowned and looked away, annoyed at her shrewd comment. Mei came up and wrapped her arms around him, "Stop worrying." She said with a smile, the she kissed him and walked away.

Zuko looked back at the moon, he knew Mei was only trying to be nice but her words didn't exactly make him feel better, was regaining his honor worth all he lost? He didn't realize it would mean betraying the two people he cared about the most, now thanks to him his uncle was going to prison, and Azula never told him what would happen to Nyikani. The thought stung him like a scorpionbee, Nyikani's life was torn apart again, and it was because of him.

**Meanwhile…again…**

Katara uncovered the bandages on Aang's back, revealing a serious burn mark, she pulled up some water and got to work, "Tell me where your pain feels most intense." She instructed.

Aang winced, "A little higher." He winced again, suddenly a vision appeared, it was him, back in Ba Sing Se, he was in the Avatar State. Aang opened his eyes, "Wow, you're definitely in the right area there."

Katara was still moving the water, "I can feel a lot of energy twisted up around there, let me just see if I can…" As she said this she removed the water. Aang could feel the intense pain in his back, another vision appeared, of the same instance as before, but in this one he could see that Azula had shot him with a bolt of lightning, his eyes flew open. "I went down!" he said in revelation, "I didn't just get hurt did I? It was worse than that, I was gone…but you brought me back."

"I just used the spirit water from the North Pole; I don't know what I did exactly." Katara said.

Aang turned around, "You saved me…"

Katara gently touched his face, "You need to rest."

"Wait," Aang said, "I was wondering, I saw everybody on the ship but Nyikani, I bet she could use a healing session too."

Katara looked down sadly, "Nyikani…isn't here."

"What?"

"She stayed behind to help us get away…" Katara said sadly.

Aang looked at the pain on Katara's face; she and Nyikani had become close friends during the Gaang's stay at Ba Sing Se, he realized leaving her behind must have been one of hardest things Katara had ever had to do, it was like leaving family.

"Nyikani made you leave, didn't she?" Aang asked.

Katara nodded, then she got up, "You need to get some rest." And then she left.

**Time Skip!**

Aang was washed up on the shore of an island, when Momo appeared out of nowhere; Aang opened his eyes and sat up. To his surprise the rest of the group was there also, Katara ran up with teary eyes, "You're ok!" She said as she hugged him. Everyone else joined in, (including Aappa).

"I have so much to do." Aang said.

"I know," Katara told him, "but you'll have our help."

"You didn't think you could get out of training just by coming to the Fire Nation did you?" Toph joked.

Aang smiled, then turned to Sokka, "What about the invasion?"

"We'll join up with my dad and the invasion force on the day of the eclipse." Sokka answered.

"Hey, what's-" Toph turned around and picked up what was left of Aang's broken glider, "Oh…it's your glider…"

Aang took it and looked at it for a moment, "That's ok," he finally said, "If someone saw it, it would give away my identity. It's better for now that no one knows I'm alive." After he said this he jumped up to a large crack in the rock, just between two streams of lava, and there he place his glider, where it eventually burned in the flames.

**Later that same night somewhere far off…mainly somewhere at a shipyard…**

An ostrichhorse pulled a wagon up to a group of Fire Nation soldiers, among them was a man from the Earth Kingdom. Everybody seemed to be on edge, "Sir," the supposed head guard began, "Are you sure we don't need more back-up?"

The Earth Kingdom man laughed, but only once, "In her state, this is probably too many men." He said with a wicked smile, but it disappeared as he looked at the guard, "That is, so long as you took my restrictions into account."

The guard became a little uneasy, but quickly hid it, "Of course, sir." A small bead of sweat dripped down his face, "If all goes well she will be transported to the Boiling Rock by tomorrow, just as the Princess instructed."

The Earth Kingdom man huffed with annoyance, "If you ask me she should have been executed, along with her dog…" But he fell silent as the wagon arrived at its destination, with the back facing all the soldiers, the head guard could feel more sweat collecting on his brow, _All we have to do is walk her and the animal to the holding ship, then we're done! _The door to the wagon had been opened, but all the Earth Kingdom man and the guard could see was darkness, "I know you're in there…" said the Earth Kingdom man. The guard stepped up, "Show yourself!" As if to answer his call a small object rolled towards them, it seemed to be sparking, was it…_a bomb!_ All the men reeled back as the bomb went off, releasing a huge cloud of smoke, then from the cloud a large shape leaped out over the men and sprinted on all fours into the woods, everyone else was still trying to regain themselves when the Earth Kingdom man stood up.

"YOU IDIOT!" He screamed at the guard, "I told you to **separate them!**"

The guard shrunk and bowed, "Forgive me, Master Lao. We'll send a team to retrieve her immediately."

"Don't bother looking for long." Lao said, "In her condition she's as good as dead out there anyway." Then his wicked smile returns, "There's no point in getting the animal if the girl's already gone."

"And what do we tell the Princess?" The guard asked.

"If we don't find her, then tell Princess Azula she died on the way here."

The guard looked uneasy once more, "Y-yes sir."

Up on a ridged a large four-legged shape looked at the already far away shipyard, "Look sharp, men!" The guard commanded, "Fan out and keep your guard up, we're obviously dealing with a human as well as a beast." The animal growled softly, but was quieted by a hand touching its ear, the animal turned around to another shape on its back, it whispered something to the beast, then silently as a night owl the animal and its rider ran off farther into the woods.

**Bet you can't guess who that is! :O By the way sorry for the excess of short chapters, as I said I'm trying to work out a system where things will be longer, but not too confusing, anyway read and review please, and thanks to everyone who favorited my story! It means alot to me.**


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry it was such a long wait, for a short chapter... I have a bunch of stuff going on and I'm having a little trouble with the formatting, plus I'm also working on another story and to top it off, SCHOOL! But with further adieu... ENJOY! Disclaimer?**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the oc's she has created.**

**Prologue:**

Azula is having her hair washed in the Royal…..Hair, Wash, Room…? Anyway a guard has entered the room and bowed before her, (we recognize this as the Lead guard from the last chapter).

Azula looks up, "Oh, I assume you're here to tell me about our new prisoners?"

"Yes, Princess." He said, "Iroh has been successfully detained in the palace jail."

"Good." Azula said with only half interest, "What about Nyikani?"

"I beg your pardon Princes-"

"The _WOLF GIRL_! What about her?" She snapped.

The guard began to sweat as he relayed the order in his mind, _She died on the way here, she died on the way here, she died on the way here, she died on-_"She has been transported to the Boiling Rock just as you ordered, your highness." _CRAP! Master Lao is going to have my head! _

Azula smiled with satisfaction, "Perfect."

"Does your highness wish me to tell the Prince?"

"Don't worry, I'll tell him."

**Episode 4 "Sokka's Master"**

"Must you ruin everything?" Sokka asked Katara in a joking manor.

"I can't believe I missed you." Katara said, also out of fun.

Everyone was enjoying themselves when Toph froze, whipped around and sent a tremor beneath a nearby tree; it shook violently as the rest of the group looked at Toph, confused. As the tree shook another sound was heard, several thumping sounds, and the group saw a shadow fall from it, hitting several branches on the way down, then finally land with a grunt and a thud.

The shadow was a hooded figure, everyone took their fighting stances. For a moment the person sat there on the ground, a smile appeared on their face, "Earth, water, and air against fire?" They said, "That seems a little unfair." Everyone stared in disbelief, how could this stranger possibly know exactly what they could bend?

"Who are you?" Aang demanded.

The person began to stand up. Katara couldn't quite put her finger on it, but there was something strangely familiar about this person. As the stranger stood they took their hood off and revealed their face, everyone's expression turned from caution to surprise and excitement.

"_**Salamu, Aang**_."

**Between the Episode's 4 and 5…**

Everyone was overjoyed to see Nyikani but Katara managed to get to her first, giving a hug to their long lost friend.

"Nyikani!"

"But you're supposed to be in prison." Aang pointed out.

"Yeah?" Nyikani replied, "Well _you're _supposed to be dead."

"Speaking of which," Sokka cut in, "How did you make it to the Fire Nation?"

Nyikani folded her arms and looked at everybody, "It's a long story." She warned.

"Don't worry," Toph said, "we have loads of time!"

**Later that evening…**

Everyone sat around the campfire with their dinner, listening intently as Nyikani tells them about her escape, "After that Cado and I took off in the woods. We've been pretty much un-noticed."

"So how did you know we were here?" Sokka asked.

"Well Cado and I were passing through a town when I heard some locals talking about a strange kid named Kuzon who was teaching the school kids how to dance."

"Just from that?" Toph asked.

"Well that and he was apparently running around with three other strange kids….and a monkey."

"Yep." Sokka said, "That sounds like us."

"Once I heard that I knew I **needed **to see if it was you guys."

"The chances of it being us were pretty slim." Sokka pointed out.

"So were the chances of me and Cado getting out alive." Nyikani said.

Sokka blinked, can't argue with that logic! Everyone ate their dinner in silence for a moment before Toph spoke up, "Hey guys! You know what this means?" She asked.

"Now that we have Cado we finally have a decent fisher?" Katara joked, Sokka scowled in a comedic manor.

"That, and Aang finally has a real firebending teacher!" She exclaimed. Aang's expression brightened and he looked at Nyikani with excitement, "Yeah! Now that you found us, I can learn from a master!"

Katara expected her friend to jump at the idea of getting to teach the Avatar what she knows, but to her surprise, (and Aang's curiosity), Nyikani's face seemed a little uncertain, maybe even nervous, Nyikani paused for a moment, "All right," she said, "I'll teach you, first thing tomorrow!" Aang smiled, "You'll be a great teacher!" Nyikani gave a small smile, "Yeah…" After that everyone continued with their dinner.

It was still early in the morning; the sun had barely come up, when Aang heard a sound. He yawned and got up from his spot in Aappa's fur, he looked around, everyone else was fast asleep; that is, everyone that was there, Nyikani was gone. Aang looked around and caught a glimpse of her disappearing into the woods, his curiosity got the better of him and he decided to follow her. Nyikani led Aang down a trail into a clearing next to a small pond; luckily she hadn't detected Aang's presence, he knew hiding in a tree would work! He watched as Nyikani took her fighting stance, and began to practice her bending, but something was different, her white fire seemed to be small and restrained, was she holding back or something?

Nyikani kept up the small flames, _So far, so good_, as she kept bending she gradually increased the intensity of the flames, then she stopped for a moment, _All right, let's try it! _She felt confident enough; she summoned her strength and started to bend at her natural, full power. A satisfied smile appeared as she worked slowly into how Aang usually saw her bend, she was just getting to her full power when-

_Snap!_

Suddenly everything around her seemed to move in slow motion, Nyikani let out a grunt as her legs gave out and she collapsed on the ground, panting, the painfully familiar pain (redundance?) seared into her. Aang completely forgot that he was hiding and ran to her side. Nyikani was attempting to pick herself up, "_**Kinyesi!**_" she cursed; she looked up from her crumpled position with her face in the dirt, only to see Aang standing there.

"Aang?" She said in shock, "How much of that did you see?" She asked, there was a hint of an edge in her voice.

"I saw enough." Aang replied, he knelt down and began to help Nyikani to her feet, "Don't worry, I'm fine." Nyikani said hastily, but she could tell by the look on Aang's face he wasn't convinced, so she submitted and let Aang put one arm over his shoulder. "Come on," he told her, "Let's get Katara."

Back at the camp everyone was awake and having breakfast when Aang and Nyikani returned. Katara turned around and was surprised to see Nyikani leaning heavily on Aang, her left hand over her right side.

"Are you two alright?" She asked them.

"Ye-agh!" Nyikani began but was cut off by another stab of pain.

"I don't even need to feel your heartbeat to know you're lying." Toph retorted.

"What happened?" Katara asked.

"Uh…" Aang began, "Nyikani, what _did _happen?"

"Well you see I-ungh…!" Yet another jab, Aang quickly led her to a nearby rock and sat her down. Nyikani took off her tunic to reveal her stomach wrapped in bandages, or what was left of them. "What happened?" Katara asked.

"What happened to what?" Toph asked.

Without waiting for an answer Katara took the bandages off, only to be shocked by what it was concealing, a gruesome, bloody burn scar, everyone looked completely shocked. (redundance!) Nyikani clenched her teeth as Katara whipped out her water and began healing, but as Katara went on Nyikani's face became less tense and she exhaled calmly, "Boy does that feel better…"

"It's not completely gone, but I managed to stop the bleeding." Katara said as she took the water away, the wound had been healed, but the scar remained. "Nyikani," Aang said, "What happened?"

Nyikani's eyes darkened as she looked down, "Zuko happened." Her voice was bitter. Aang and Katara realized what she meant. "He did that to you?" Aang asked. "Yes." She replied.

"When was this?" Sokka asked.

"It was in the Crystal Catacombs in Ba Sing Se." Katara answered for Nyikani, "You and Toph were with the Earth King."

"I hate to barge in," Said Toph, "but what's the big deal over a little injury?" Toph had heard about a bleeding wound, but she couldn't see just how serious it was. A small light went off in Aang's head, "Does this scar have something to do with what happened earlier?"

Nyikani heaved a sigh, "Yes." Then she turned to Toph, "It's not just an injury, it's a scar, and it has some lasting side effects." Everyone leaned in to listen. "During the fight in the catacombs, Lao Che stabbed me in the lower right side, (not that it really did much), but after that…Zuko…shot me," Nyikani was forcing the words out, Aang couldn't help but think about his talk with Iroh, who had told him that Zuko and Nyikani were very close, something didn't ring right though, Prince Zuko was a bad guy, but to lash out at someone he supposedly cared so deeply about? Aang couldn't picture even Zuko doing something that terrible, _Was it, maybe an accident? _He knew better than to ask Nyikani that.

"Either of those injuries by themselves would just temporarily weaken me, but when the wound was burned…it damaged the flow of energy in my body, if I over-exert myself, my whole body gives out and the scar re-opens."

"So that means…" Toph began.

"I can't bend anymore…"

"Why didn't you tell us?" Aang asked. Nyikani looked away, "I didn't want anybody to see me like this! I come from a line of elite warriors…and I can't even so much as make a decent flame now." She told him.

"And you still agreed to teach Aang firebending?" Sokka asked in disbelief.

"It's been a while since the last bending attempt; I thought that if I gave the wound some time to heal it might be easier to bend." Everyone fell silent, "When the wound was fresher I couldn't bend at all, I just have to re-learn." Then she looked at Aang, "I'm sorry, Aang, I thought I could teach you, but I can't."

"It's ok, I wouldn't agree to something that would put a friend in danger." Aang said wisely. Nyikani's eyes still looked dark, Katara put a reassuring hand on her shoulder, "Those injuries combined would've killed a normal person." She pointed out, though it didn't really lift her spirits, but Toph spoke up, "Hey, if nothing else, you still found us!"

**I decided to go ahead and post this, just to focus on the part I'm having trouble with, but anyway! To explain the _SNAP _thing, this signifies when Nyikani has over-exherted herself, so if you see that, that means...exactly what I just said, usually ending with her on the ground or re-opening the wound, as has been previously stated. Sooooo... Will Nyikani ever recover? Does she know the true circumstances of her accident? Will she ever come face-to-face with the Fire Prince again? If she does, what will she do? Read and review please! P.S. Sorry for the inconvenience, I'll work on a better story format than 'Time Skip!', 'Now on Episode #', and 'Between Episodes:... See you hopefully soon!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Hooray! A not super short chapter! :D Again with the long waits... I thought summer would be LESS bust than school! But anyway here's chapter 11, taking place during Episode 9: Nightmares and Daydreams. This chapter mainly revolves around how Nyikani feels about the impending Invasion and just who she might see, particularly a certain male...**

**Ammypaint: *looks around* Been a while since I've posted anything.**

**Sokka: You could say that again. HEY DISCLAIMER! SHE'S BACK!**

**Disclaimer: It's about time!**

**Ammypaint: Hey! I've been busy!**

**Disclaimer: Suuuuuure...**

**Ammypaint: Just do it before I hire someone else!**

**Disclaimer: Ok, ok. *clears throat* Ammypaint DOES NOT OWN A:TLAB, just the OC's she has created.**

Everyone emerged from the bushes into the clearing, Sokka looked at his map and looked at his surroundings, "This is it; the rendezvous point for the invasion."

Toph looked around, "How'd you pick this place?"

"Before we split up my dad and I found this island on a map. It's un-inhabited and a harbor surrounded by cliffs seemed like the perfect secluded place."

"Nice choice, Sokka." Katara said, "And we're here four days ahead of schedule!"

"_Four days?_The invasion's in **FOUR DAYS?** *auh*" Aang exclaimed worriedly.

Sokka stretched out on his sleeping bag and yawned, "Whatever," he told Aang, "that's like, four days from now…let's just calm down, and-"He was already down and out. Katara did the same, "Sokka's got the right idea, Aang. We're here, we're ready; the best thing we can do is get plenty of rest."

Nyikani was stretched out on her sleeping bag, she could hear the reluctance in Aang's laying-down motion; the deadline was getting to him, it was getting to her too, she wasn't nervous, but she had a score to settle with the other players in their dirty little game. She was already planning her strategy for the invasion, first thing's first though, she had to ready the armor with Sokka, but even so. Azula would probably try to hold them off, _perfect_, she had been waiting for a rematch with the Fire Princess since Ba Sing Se, Lao might be there to settle their personal rivalry, but she'll probably let Cado take care of him, Cado had been harboring a desire for revenge, and who was she to get in the way? And finally Zuko, Zuko… she was half-hoping he would show up, she wanted to face him, to tell him that she hated him, that she had moved on, that what he did was wrong and she wanted to repay him for her pain. But she also hoped that she wouldn't be burdened with the problem of coming across the Fire Prince, because deep in her heart, she knew that she would be lying the whole time, she knew, somewhere, deep in the recesses of her mind, somehow Zuko's actions in the catacombs were unintentional, possibly his thoughts had been poisoned by Azula. Nyikani didn't like to think about it though, it reminded her that she had fallen, slipped up, let her guard down, for a moment she had allowed herself to be a naïve girl in love, and it cost her the ability to bend and almost her own life, she frowned and rolled onto her side, her back up against Cado's, their classic sleeping position, and drifted off into her own dreams.

**Early that morning…**

***thump-thump-thump-thump* **All the kids were awakened by the noise, and saw Aang rigorously punching a tree, Katara looked at Sokka, who simply shrugged while she went to go talk to him, Toph sat back and Cado stretched with a moan and curled back up and opened one eye at Nyikani, as if to say _Are you joining in rest?" _Nyikani shook her head, "Nah, I'll get some armor work done with Sokka."

"And I don't know any firebending! Not even the basics!" Aang said with a half-crazed look, Katara gently lowered Aang's had from her face.

"That's ok, Aang, the eclipse will block all firebending anyway you don't need to know any, plus it's a stupid element!"

"Hey! Mis-used!" Nyikani corrected sternly.

"Yeah sure."

"Look do you want my help or not?"

"I can assemble armor!"

"Yeah but **I **can meld it!"

There was an awkward silence, Sokka opened his mouth to say something, "…Fair enough." Nyikani smiled with satisfaction, all day was spent measuring, weighing, and painting blueprints, as well as arguing over how to get the colors Sokka wanted for Aappa's red armor, Nyikani's and Cado's armor wouldn't need any real color tweaking since Sokka had the right paint, the day still wasn't quite as productive as they had hoped, all the real hand-work would have to be done tomorrow.

It looked like Aang had worked to the bone as he fell over onto his grass bed, he yawned, "Good night Katara, good night Sokka, good night Toph, good night Nyikani, good night Cado, good night Aappa, good night Momo, good night Aappa and Mo-"

"GO TO SLEEP ALREADY!" Toph shouted. Aang flinched, but eventually closed his eyes.

**Meanwhile…**

"I guess there are some nice perks that come with being royalty." Mei said to Zuko as they sat down on her couch, "Though there's annoying stuff too, like that All-Day War Meeting coming up."

"War Meeting?" Zuko sat up, "what are you talking about?"

"Azula mentioned something; I assumed you were going too."

Zuko looked away, downcast, "I guess I wasn't invited…" It looked like his father still didn't believe he was worthy enough to be part of the war meetings, the Fire Lord thought he was the hero of the Fire Nation, but apparently that wasn't enough; why? Was it because he was associated with Uncle Iroh? Was it because of how his last war meeting turned out? Did his father think he wasn't ready yet?

One thought sprung into his mind, he was affiliated with a wanted war criminal, one who had been charged with defending a draft dodger and outwardly assaulting the Firelord himself, the girl said to be half wild animal, the Wolf Princess. Luckily though the officials didn't really know just how "affiliated" he was. Zuko felt a stab of remorse, Nyikani had liked him a lot, even trusted him, and he still betrayed her. _It was an accident… _he told himself, but she didn't know that, and he knew she didn't know, it seemed his life was full of regrets, but knew something; one thing he didn't regret was meeting her.

**Meanwhile…later…**

"**SOKKA GET UP I NEED TO KNOW WHAT DAY IT IS!**"

"What? Who's talking?" Sokka shouted, without thinking he grabbed his sword and leaped up, only to smack his face against a wall of a rock, then fall over.

"Relax!" Toph yelled at Aang, "It's still two days before the invasion!"

Aang didn't seem to hear, "Sokka you've gotta get up and drill your rock climbing exercises!"

"What?"

"In one of my dreams, you were running from Fire Nation soldiers, trying to climb this cliff! But you were too slow and they got you!"

"But that was just a dream." Sokka pointed out, "I'm a great climber!"

Aang pointed to the nearby cliff, "Then climb that cliff! CLIMB IT FAST!" Sokka looked at the cliff, then back at Aang, who nodded him on, "Stupid Avatar, stupid cliff, stupid dream! I can climb fast!" He grumbled while climbing.

Aang smiled hopefully but suddenly shouted when he noticed Toph taking a drink of water. "Don't drink that!" He yelled. Toph spat out the water all over Katara, "Why? Is it poisoned?" She exclaimed.

"In my dream, we were right in the middle of the invasion, and you had to stop to use the bathroom. We died because of your tiny bladder." Then he turned to Katara, "And you need to start wearing your hair UP, in one of my dreams your hair got caught in a train and-"

"**Aang!**" Katara stopped him and put her hand on his cheek, "I know you're only trying to help but you _really _need to get a grip. You're unraveling."

"You're right." Aang told her, "I'm losing my mind."

Nyikani was busy heating the metal plates for Sokka to hammer while Aang paced back and forth nervously. "It's like every time I think about how stressed I am I just end up more stressed. I'm like a big growing snowball of nerves!"

Sokka paused his hammering, "Of course you are, that's because you gotta fight the Firelord, the baddest man on the planet, and you better win or we're all done for!"

"Sokka!" Katara shouted, "You're not helping."

"What? It's true. That's the deal, he knows it." Katara pushed Sokka back to his sitting position and he resumed hammering the next piece of heated metal. Nyikani watched Katara lead Aang away for some 'de-stressifying', then she raised one eyebrow and looked at Sokka, "'Baddest man on the planet?'-"

"Hey! It's the truth!"

"Are you going to help 'de-stressify' Aang too?"

"Well, I have been working on my therapy skills."

Nyikani just looked at him, "…I'll just take your word for it."

"Oh so what are you gonna do?"

"I have an idea in mind." Cado's ears perked up, Nyikani guessed that Katara's yoga stretches had failed, "That's your cue 'guru'." As Sokka left Nyikani knew this would turn into a mission requiring a team effort from everyone, "Cado, work on your cuddling, this is gonna take some real work." The lionwolf peeked at her from the tree branch he was perched on, his head hanging down.

So far, Katara, Sokka, and Toph didn't manage to succeed in helping Aang, it was up to her. "All right, Aang, what you need is a good massage." Aang didn't seem very convinced. Aang was sitting facing away from Nyikani; truthfully he was somewhat nervous about getting a massage from a girl that could break somebody's femur. Nyikani rubbed her hands together, Aang shrunk at the foreboding noise, as she clasped her fingers together he was close to making a run for it.

Nyikani casually cracked her fingers and knuckles, Aang flinched at the thunderous noise. "Ok, let's get-" Nyikani turned around to see that there was nobody there, "…Aang?"

**Meanwhile…**

"Zuko," Mei said, "It's just a dumb meeting, who cares?"

"I don't." Zuko replied.

"Well good, you shouldn't. I mean, why would you even want to go? Just think about how things went at the last war meeting you went to."

Mei definitely wasn't helping. "*sigh* I know…" Zuko said with rising irritation, this would've been his chance to redeem himself, to finally prove to his father that he was ready to take responsibility and become a worthy heir to the throne, and Mei was acting like it was no big deal.

"You know what will make you feel better?" Mei asked with a smile, Zuko looked harder out the window, "Ordering some servants around! I might be hungry for a whole tray of fruit tarts!" Zuko was getting more irritated, "And, maybe a little palanquin ride around town, Double time?" Mei put her hand on his cheek and turned his face to hers, but he turned away. Zuko knew she was only trying to cheer him up, but all she was really doing was annoying him to death, as if he didn't feel bad enough. Zuko was still looking out the window when a gust of wind came out of nowhere; it had made a break in the sheet of clouds, revealing a star burning bright in the night sky, there was something very familiar about it…then it hit him, it was Anaiyu! The white wolf star, Nyikani's star, the very one she showed to him that fateful night. _"If you are ever alone, remember that we are always under the same star…" _She had told him that to cheer him up one day, he wished she was here now; Nyikani always seemed to know what to say, but she was locked away somewhere according to Azula. Zuko looked hard at the star; _She's there…somewhere, underneath the same star_.

**Meanwhile…**

"Thanks for everything, guys." Aang said.

"So, do you feel less stressed?" Katara asked, "Ready for a good night's sleep?"

"Uh, I kinda think I sorta might slightly feel a little better…maybe." Aang replied.

Sokka yawned, "Then our work here is done." As he finished everyone else yawned and went to sleep, Aang, though somewhat reluctant, did the same.

Nyikani could tell Aang wasn't going to sleep well again, she was having a hard time getting to sleep herself, her natural habit was to look for her star, Anaiyu the spirit guide. She wished Anaiyu would guide her now, everything inside her was confused. _Even here, in the enemy nation, the White Wolf shines equally on all of us…we are all under the same star… _Now she was just thinking to try and get to sleep, but a panging thought popped into her head, was Zuko looking at this star too? Somewhere far away? Nyikani frowned, she didn't want to think about that, because she knew he probably was, or else _she_ wouldn't be thinking about it. _Cut that out!_ She told herself, she had to tell herself that Zuko was the enemy, _He's the bad guy. He sided with the enemy. He betrayed you! He…cared about you, Nyikani…_ Gah! There it was again! She yelled at herself to let go, but that annoying little voice would whisper, _hold on…_ The more she looked at the star, the louder the little voice seemed to get, but she still argued with it, Aang wasn't the only one starting to lose it. _Enough of this!_ Nyikani silenced both voices and rolled over, burying her face in Cado's mane, as if to hide from the star's gaze, she didn't want to think about this anymore.

"**HUAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHH!**" Aang had woken up from his nightmares, the rest of the Gaang woke up slowly, Aappa and Momo shrieked themselves, and Cado scrambled to his feet barking crazily.

"What happened, Aang?" Katara asked.

"It's the nightmares, they just get worse and worse!"

Sokka lifted one finger, "Looks like it's time for another-" He spun around and reappeared with a beard and mustache, "Therapy Session!" he said with a deep voice.

Aang looked at him, then looked back down, "No that won't help, nothing helps! There's only one thing I can do, I'm gonna stay awake straight through to the invasion!"

Everybody looked in shock, because they knew he meant it.

**Later that day…**

Nyikani and Sokka were hammering away on Aappa's armor, they had finally figured out how to get the color! So far they had all other pieces completed; all that was left was the head. Things were going according to plan when suddenly one of Aang's air bullets went astray, blowing Sokka way into the air and then slamming him on the ground, "Hey, I'm trying to build Aappa some armor here so he doesn't have to go into the invasion naked! He's _your _bison."

Nyikani looked at him without moving her head and lifted one eyebrow, then went back to hammering. Suddenly Sokka's eyes flew open, "OH! Speaking of which!"

Nyikani's head shot up, "**What?**"

Speaking of **armor!**" Sokka corrected, "Nyikani, I made you this." As he said this he pulled out a small bundle of cloth.

Nyikani took the cloth and unwrapped it; she was completely surprised at what she found. "A new shuko…" she said in wonder. Her last shuko had been lost when she was captured in Ba Sing Se, she was lucky to have gotten out with her sai's, all the same, she had missed her shuko. She slipped it on her right hand, a perfect fit, with the claws on the knuckles and everything, and these claws seemed to be crafted from a strange black metal.

"I figured you might want your favorite weapon for when we invade the Fire Nation." Sokka told her, "The spikes are made of the same metal as my sword, so they'll cut through anything!"

"Sokka…" She was lost for words, "I don't know what to say, this is amazing!" She turned to him and smiled, "I'm really touched."

Sokka lifted his hands up, "No thanks necessary, that's just the kind of guy I a-"

Nyikani cut him off by wrapping her arms around him, "Thanks, Sokka."

Sokka was a little startled, Nyikani wasn't a very affectionate person, especially towards him; and the feeling was mutual, she was always more of a pal or sister, but he returned the gesture.

"Are we having a moment?" Nyikani asked.

"…I think so." Sokka replied.

There was a long pause, then Nyikani broke the silence, "It feels kinda weird…"

"…Can we stop?"

"Yeah."

At that they stopped hugging and resumed their work. They managed to get everything armor-related done, which was a good thing since Sokka had hatched another idea after Aang's insane episode, something about Momo and Aappa having a samurai battle…

**Later that night…**

"Oh look," Aang said, unimpressed, "another hallucination, an imaginary bed made out of clouds."

"HEY! It's **real!**" Toph shouted. "We spent _hours_ working on it!"

"We made it for you." Sokka said, "A good night sleep will probably take the crazy away…we hope."

Aang hopped up from the bed and faced his friends, "Look, you guys keep telling me I need to sleep, but I _can't_! The invasion's **tomorrow**!"

Katara began to speak, "Aang-"

"No Katara! There's so much I haven't learned, I don't need sleep, what I need is practice." Aang put his fists up tiredly, " Quick! Hit me!"

"I'm not going to hit you." Katara told him.

Toph spoke up, "You want me to do it?" Sokka nudged her to be quiet.

"Listen to me," Katara began as she went up to Aang, "You've been training for this since the day we met. I've seen your progress, you're smart, brave, and strong enough."

Aang looked at her hopefully, "You really think so?"

Katara nodded. "We all do," Sokka said, "you can do this." Toph joined in, "You're the man Twinkle Toes!"

"Aang," Nyikani said steadily, "You're ready."

Aang smiled, "Thanks, guys." And with that he yawned and let Katara help him onto his fluffy bed, "You know what? I think I am ready…" Everybody smiled as Aang finally drifted off into a peaceful sleep.

As the rest of the group dozed off Nyikani was laying on her back, looking hard at the sky, Aang was finally convinced he could do this, _Now it's my turn. _She thought decisively, tomorrow would be the Day of Black Sun, the day the 100 Year War would end, and her moment of truth, was she really ready to face her greatest foe?

**...I kinda put my ending question in the story... But anyway! Is Nyikani truely ready? Will she come across the Fire Prince? Will she have the courage to stand against him? WILL Azula totally screw things up like always? Read and review please! And by the way thanks for all the favorites! Tune in for the next chapter, The Day of Black Sun.**


	12. Chapter 12

**HOORAH! Posting super late before you go on a week-long trip FTW! Ok, finally, The Day of Black Sun. What will happen? Who will get hurt? And HOW EPIC WILL IT BE? Plus, I hid a little refrence in there, can you find it? Ok, disclaimer?**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the oc's she created.**

Chapter 12

Everybody was waiting, Sokka was studying his maps while everybody else sat around, suddenly Aang appeared .

"Top of the morning, Momo!" Aang said as he hopped up.

"Sounds like you slept well." Katara told him.

"Like a baby moose lion. I'm ready to face the Firelord!"

"So what's you strategy for taking him down?" Toph asked, "Gonna get your glow on and hit him with a little 'Avatar State' action?" She said while punching the air.

Aang looked down, "I can't. When Azula shot me with lightning, my seventh chakra was locked; cutting off my connection to all the cosmic energy in the universe…"

Toph sat there for a moment, "You know what I just heard? Blah-blah 'spiritual mumbo jumbo' blah-blah something about space."

"Looks like we're both going to the fight with scars." Nyikani said, she was standing on the ledge, facing the sea.

Katara and Aang looked at her, "Are you ok?" Katara asked.

"Yeah, you're acting even more serious than usual." Toph put in.

"I'm fine." Nyikani said unemotionally, "I'm ready to finish this war."

Aang smiled, "I think we all are." Nyikani looked at him sideways and cracked a small smile, but quickly returned to staring at the ocean. Sokka looked at Cado, "What's with her?" Cado was lying down; he rested his head on his paws at Sokka's question.

"Oh no." Katara said as she looked out to sea, "Sokka, do you think the fog will delay the invasion?"

Sokka stood up and looked, "No, that is the invasion!" He said excitedly.

Nyikani looked around as the Invasion force unloaded from the ships. Katara, Aang and Sokka were busily running around and greeting old friends, making sure everybody was picked up, and seeing to all the preparations that were made. Suddenly Katara grabbed her by the wrist and led her over to a tall Water Tribe man.

"Dad," She said to him, "This is our friend, Nyikani!"

_Dad? Oh, this must be Chief Hakoda… _Nyikani smiled and extended her hand.

"Pleasure to meet you." Hakoda said while returning the gesture, "My daughter's told me a lot about you."

"Likewise, Chief Hakoda."

They both turned and looked around at the group of people; Aang was introducing Haru to Toph, who found her Earth Rumble VI competitors. Hakoda spoke again, "It looks like we'll have all four elements in the Invasion."

"Few people know it, but I'm speaking for a good portion of my nation when I say this war needs to come to an end." Nyikani said, Sokka walked up and was about to say something when suddenly a loud explosion exploded(REDUNDANCE!) from one of the boats, Teo rolled out of the smoke, slowly followed by his father, Pipsqueak, and the Duke, all were covered in some sort of brown substance.

"Was that a new invention?" Sokka asked the Professor as they ran up.

"Yes, but unfortunately the incendiary capabilities of peanut sauce proved to be a failure."

"You're making peanut sauce bombs?" Sokka asked in disbelief.

"They're destructive…" Pipsqueak began.

"And delicious!" The Duke finished.

As everyone laughed Cado walked up with his nose in the air, obviously enticed by the tasty peanut smell, the scent quickly brought him to Teo, who was a little startled when the large lionwolf began to lick the sauce off of his face.

Teo laughed as Cado's tongue moved to his hands, "Well Dad, the sauce might not work as a bomb, but it sure does attract a lot of animals!"

"Sorry, that one's mine." Nyikani said with amusement, it wasn't often she saw her protective wild wolf infatuated with the smell of peanuts.

While Sokka and his father were talking to the Professor, Teo looked at Aang. "Aang, my dad and I made this for you." As he said this he took a staff off of his lap and handed it to him, as Aang took it a pair of wings and handles folded out.

"A new glider, this is amazing!"

The Professor walked up, "And as a special feature I added a snack compartment!"

Aang watched as he demonstrated, "Oh, well um, I'm sure that'll come in handy."

"Sokka." Hakoda called, Sokka ran up to his father.

"It's time for the debrief."

Sokka stiffened up, public speaking? Not his forte.

**After the debrief… (No I did not put it in, come on did you seriously think I wanted to write all that? You all know what happens.)**

All the final preparations were being made, Katara was shoving sixteen gallons into her two water pouches, Toph was slipping on her wristbands, and Hakoda put on his warrior wolf helmet. Aappa was quite a site, gilded in his red and gold armor; he stood on a cliff and roared.

Aang had stolen away to remove his hair, showing his blue arrow for the first time in months, he stood on the edge of the sea, ready to face his destiny, and petting a koalagoat. Cado stood proudly at the top of a cliff, wearing a suited harness with a saddle, all surrounded by black armor, he lifted his head and let out a thunderous roar, sending all the seagulls into the air. Nyikani stood a ways off, she wore a suit of black armor, on the heart was a white silhouette of a howling wolf(a lionwolf), it was almost complete… slowly Nyikani took a black band and tied it around her head, _perfect. _She took a moment to let the wind blow on her face, _Today's the day…we're gonna end this. _She closed her eyes and felt the sea breeze flow around her…

"Yeah yeah, you're the 'Mononoke Hime' now would you hurry up, the boats are ready to leave!" Sokka shouted.

"I'm working on it!" Nyikani snapped back, she slipped on her black shuko and headed down to the boats.

**In the submarines…**

"You've really out-done yourself this time, son." Hakoda said to Sokka, Sokka smiled.

"Yeah, congratulations, Sokka…" Toph moaned, "You managed to invent a worse way to travel than flying…"

The Duke took off his hat and gave it to Toph, "Helmet?" Toph took it and threw up.

Nyikani groaned from the other side of the submarine, she was leaned up against the wall, "I'm with Toph on this one…"

"Don't ninjas like being hidden?" Sokka teased.

"I dunno, do you like having your wrist dislocated?" Nyikani shot back, but there was a wry smile on her face.

"…no."

"Well then I guess I'm not a ninja."

Hakoda gave Nyikani a strange look, "That didn't make very much sense."

"You get used to it." Sokka said.

**As the submarines head to the plaza…**

Everyone was waiting, Toph had joined the earthbenders, and Sokka and Nyikani were standing with the Water Tribe soldiers, while waiting for the signal Nyikani had put on her black facemask,(the same one from chapter one), anticipation hung in the air as the subs began to emerge from the water. A loud thud was heard as the subs hit land, when the hatches opened the earthbenders' large metal tanks stormed out first, after them it was the foot soldiers, who shouted as they ran out into the open.

The tanks did most of the work as the entire platoon stormed their way into the plaza, crushing the ground battlements while the benders took care of the tanks, when the mounted patrol emerged the ground soldiers jumped into action. Nyikani hopped onto Cado and rode ahead of the group, her eyes narrowed as a komodo rhino charged straight at them, as Cado ran faster she could see the confusion in the rider's eyes, the gap began to disappear and right before they collided Cado leaped straight over the rhino, Nyikani swiped the soldier's spear in mid-air before snagging his armor with her shuko, whipping him off his rhino and onto the ground.

"Sokka, we've gotta take out those battlements! It's out only chance." Nyikani heard Hakoda say, _Take out battlements? No problem… _ As she was thinking Aappa landed beside her.

"Nyikani," Sokka called, "Hop on, we're going to take out those battlements!"

"No need!" She shouted back, "I'll take 'em from down here."

"How are you gonna do that?" Katara asked with a confused expression.

Nyikani smiled slyly, "Don't worry about me, now go before you get hit!" With that the trio flew off. Nyikani leaned over to Cado's ear, "Ok pal, let's show Sokka just how 'Mononoke Hime' we can be, _**kukimbia!**_"(run)

Like a bolt of lightning Cado took off, wearing a snarl as he weaved out of the way of the oncoming bombs. Nyikani pointed the spear(yes it's still in her hand) to the closest battlement,(note that it is on a cliff like the rest of them) Cado sped up and ran to the target.

"Hey, Toph!" Nyikani called.

"Yeah?"

"I could use a lift; I'm aiming for the next to last battlement!"

"No prob!" As Toph said this she sent a rumbling crack through the ground, making a piece of rock jut out from the side of the cliff wall.

"Thanks a bunch!" Cado saw the rock and ran faster still, he knew what to do. As the wolf came up to the rock he jumped and turned his body, slamming the top of his body onto the rock, propelling Nyikani up into the air. While flying up she shoved the spear into the cliff wall and scrabbled on top of it, then using it like a spring board she bounced on it until she flew high enough to reach the battlement. Landing in the window on her knees, she whipped out her sai's and incapacitated the first guard to try and stop her, then she slipped into the battlement, took out the last guard lady, then took a bomb and lit the fuse.

While the fuse shrank the guards cleared out, Nyikani did the same, and she leaped out of the window and off the edge of the cliff, caught by her lionwolf who had jumped high into the air, Cado stuck the landing and added his own dose of epicness by sliding for about ten feet, both he and his girl were panting after that perfect execution. Slowly Nyikani's breathing turned into an exhausted laugh, "Nice work, Cado-" She fell silent when she saw Sokka, Katara, and Hakoda staring at her.

"So," She said to Sokka as she slid off of Cado, "Was that 'Mononoke Hime' enough?"

A sly smile appeared on Sokka's face, "It would've just been easier if you'd gotten on Aappa with us."

"Sokka, what's she talking about?" Katara asked.

"It's a long story." Nyikani answered for him, she then looked at Chief Hakoda, "What happened?"

Hakoda attempted to sit up, "There was a little accident in one of the battlements." As he said this he cringed at the pain in his side.

"Trust me, as much as you ignore it, the wound doesn't go away." Nyikani told him.

"She's speaking from experience." Sokka chimed in.

"Hey Sokka guess what?"

"What?"

"Shut up."

Sokka frowned, but Katara spoke up, "Sokka, I thought you were going to lead the invasion?"

"That's right!" Sokka said, then he turned to Nyikani, "Come on, we need to get back to the plaza!"

Nyikani stood straight and mock saluted him, "Aye-aye Alpha Boomerang!"

With that Sokka climbed onto Aappa and flew off with Nyikani and Cado in tow. Within less than ten minutes Sokka had the tanks and soldiers ready to charge straight through to the plaza tower, and not an hour later the plaza tower was secured, the tanks created a shield as Sokka and the lead earthbender organized the next step in the Invasion Plan. While waiting for the next phase, earthbenders kept the Fire Nation tanks at bay as Toph and Nyikani carried out orders and attacks, Nyikani's mind was only half in the fight, the other half was miles away, she was so deep in her mind that she didn't snap out until Aang suddenly appeared and told the group that the entire Palace City was abandoned.

"They knew." Sokka realized.

"It's over," Aang said in defeat, "the Firelord is probably long-gone, far away on some remote island where he'll be safe during the eclipse…"

Sokka thought for a moment, "No, my instincts tell me he wouldn't go too far. He would have a secret bunker, somewhere he could go and be safe during a siege, but still close enough to lead his nation."

"If it's an underground secret bunker we're looking for, I'm just the girl to find it!" Toph said.

"The mechanist gave me this time device; it looks like there's ten minutes until the full eclipse," Sokka said, "ten minutes to find the Firelord."

Aang smiled reassuringly, "We can still do this, we can still win the day."

"Wait," Katara jumped in, "If they knew we were coming, it could all be a trap." She turned to Sokka, "Maybe we should use the time we have left to make sure we all get out of here safely."

Hakoda sat up, "Everyone who's here today came prepared to everything for this mission, they know what's at stake. If there's still a chance, and there's still hope, I think they would want Aang to go for it."

Sokka looked at Aang, "What do you think?" He asked, "You're the one who has to face the Firelord."

Aang closed his eyes and was silent. Sokka spoke again, "Whatever you decide, I'm with you."

His eyes opened and he stood up, he turned and looked at the sky, "I've gotta try."

Nyikani stood in awe at the determination burning in Aang's eyes, "I'm going with you." She said, Cado growled in agreement, but Nyikani looked at him, "No, I need you to stay here with the ground soldiers." As she said this Cado's ears fell back in disagreement, "Help Katara and Chief Hakoda take the Fire Palace." Nyikani said. Cado's ears lifted up a little, and he walked over and stood next to Katara.

**Inside the volcano…**

Every turn had more magma, and soon Aang, Toph, Sokka, and Nyikani stopped in a cavern full of lava geysers. "The tunnel continues on the other side, and it leads right to the bunker." Toph stated.

Sokka made the first move, "We'll have to be fast, but careful." He ran two feet before almost straight into an erupting geyser; Nyikani seized his collar and yanked him back while Aang quickly hardened the pillar of magma with his airbending.

"How was that careful?" He asked Sokka.

"I was wrong," Sokka said, "We need to be fast, careful, and _lucky._"

Everyone ran as fast as they could without touching any of the geysers, only to find that on the other side of the cave was a river of boiling hot lava.

"There's no floor." Sokka said as he pointed out the obvious, "It's just a river of lava!"

Aang pulled out his glider, "Climb aboard and hold on tight."

Nyikani looked in disbelief, "Are you being serious?" Her question was answered when she sat next to Sokka and Toph on top of Aang's glider, gliding over the lava river. When they landed it was only a short run to the bunker door, an enormous metal gate.

"That's some door!" Sokka exclaimed.

Toph walked up and put her ear against the door while knocking, "Not a problem." She took a few steps back, then hit the door several times with her elbows, and then she kissed her fingers before prying an opening through the bunker gate, she casually pointed in the direction of the Firelord's room, Aang, Nyikani, and Sokka followed suit.

"I am so glad we added you to the group!" Sokka praised as they made their way through the tunnels.

A Palace official was casually walking down a hallway, whistling merrily, but he stopped as he caught sight of something truly terrifying. A Water Tribe warrior wielding a black sword and the toughest twelve year old girl he had ever seen, and accompanied by the Avatar and the Wolf Princess! He gasped in horror.

The group turned around to see who had noticed then, like lightning they surrounded the old man, Aang help up his staff, Sokka raised his sword, Toph brought up a rock, and Nyikani whipped out her sais as well as presented her shuko.

The man raised his hands in the air, "The Firelord's chamber is that way down the hall to the left and up the stairs you can't miss it!" He blurted out hastily.

The group stared at him for a moment, then Aang's face brightened up, "Thanks!" And with that they moved on, the man took a moment to make sure nobody had seen him, then he resumed whistling and walked away.

Everybody ran to the chamber, Sokka looked at his time device, "Only thirty seconds until the total eclipse!" He shouted.

Everybody stopped at the door, Aang took a deep breath, "I'm ready." He said, "I'm ready to face the Firelord!" He then summoned a gust of wind and blew the doors off their hinges, everybody except Nyikani ran in.

Nyikani stayed outside, she decided a lookout wouldn't hurt, or at least that was her excuse. _What are you afraid of? _She thought, another mind war was starting up. _I'm not afraid of anything! Not the Firelord, not Azula, not Zuko…__**Especially **__not Zuko. _What was the worst that could happen? She wasn't worried he would attack her; a second snake bite is never as painful as the first, no, that wasn't it. So what was it? In all honesty, she was a little worried about the Firelord. It would be safer for her to stay out of that fight anyway, if the hunger for revenge against her father's killer was mixed with adrenaline and her inner wolf? THAT would not end well, particularly for someone who was so against violence like Aang. _Besides…if he tries to run out he won't be expecting a hunter lying in wait right outside the door._

But Nyikani's thoughts were interrupted when she heard a strange voice inside the chamber, it wasn't masculine and sinister like Ozai's, but more chilling and feminine, then it hit her, _Azula! She had this whole thing planned out! _Nyikani couldn't believe her ears, Azula **knew **the eclipse was coming, and she **knew **that Aang might have survived, she knew about everything! From the Invasion Plan to the fact that Aang would come barging in looking for the Firelord. A thought popped into Nyikani's head, _What Azula __**doesn't **__know is that __**I'm **__waiting right outside, ready to take her out as soon as she tries to make a run for it, this might work!_

Nyikani stood silently as a terrible clamoring resounded from the room, she resisted the urge to go in and help her friends, if this was to work, Azula could not know she was there, A familiar voice rang out among the noise, one of Azula's Dai Li agents, one Nyikani knew all too well, Lao Che, Nyikani smiled angrily. _Figures she'd pick the agent that wanted my death penalty. _But she quickly snapped back to attention, footsteps were coming to the doorway.

"I can't pin her down, she's too quick!" She heard Aang shout, _That's a signal as good as any._

Nyikani poised her sais. _One, two, three four… _She waited for the precise moment, suddenly like a striking snake she whipped out her daggers.

Azula ran for the door, but something she did not foresee appeared, two sai daggers came out of nowhere! Azula managed to duck just in time, she barely missed them, one sliced off a sliver of her bangs, and another grazed her check, leaving a hairline cut. As Azula ran she turned around to see the perpetrator, only to find that wretched wolf girl running after her with a smug grin on her face. SHE WAS SUPPOSED TO BE LOCKED UP IN PRISON. Lao had some **serious **explaining to do!

_HA! _Nyikani might not have been as surprisingly stopping as she thought, but the look on Azula's face was perfect, she couldn't help but grin a little as such a beautiful reaction, and she managed to slow Azula down long enough for Aang and Sokka to keep up, _Now it's Lao's turn._ But as Nyikani turned around and prepared to attack him Toph busted from the wall, slamming Lao into a large metal beam. Toph made short work of disarming and metalbending him into capture. One of Ba Sing Se's top Dai Li agents just got owned by a twelve year old blind girl.

"Ha! Better luck next time, Lao!" Nyikani called to the agent.

Lao looked at her with hateful, burning eyes, "YOU ROTTEN LITTLE RAT! YOU'RE SUPPOSED TO BE **DEAD**!" He yelled, squirming with rage in his metal prison.

The chase went on until Sokka slowed down, "Aang, Toph, Nyikani, stop attacking!" Everyone stopped and looked at him, "Don't you see what she's doing? She's just playing with us, she's not even trying to win this fight!"

"Not true, I'm giving it my all." Azula said sarcastically.

"We can see that." Nyikani shot back.

"You're trying to keep us here and waste all our time!" Toph exclaimed.

"Um, right, I think your friend just said that, genius. And since you can't see, I should tell you, I'm rolling my eyes." Azula sneered.

Toph frowned, "I'll roll your whole **head!**" She said angrily.

"Toph, stop." Nyikani said, "She's just trying to make you mad and waste our time."

"All right, let's go." Aang said, everyone nodded and started to walk away.

"I'm impressed; I wasn't expecting you, Nyikani." Azula said with mock impression, "So when exactly were my guards going to tell me that you'd escaped?"

Nyikani stopped and grinned smugly, "The joke's on you," She said, Azula frowned, "I never made to prison in the first place."

Azula's eyes widened for the first time, "What?"

"Sorry, did I mention that Lao's a bit of a liar?" And with that the group began to walk away again, but Azula wasn't finished.

"I had almost forgotten you existed." Azula began, still with that fake emotion in her tone.

"Ooh, that hurts…" Nyikani said unemotionally.

"After all, Zuko never talks about you."

Nyikani stopped and looked sideways at Azula, "The fact that you even possibly believe that I care astounds me." Her tone was a little edgier, and that proper and formal talking had returned in her voice.

"It's almost like you two never met."

Nyikani fell silent.

"Zuko figured you hated him after what he did, so he gave up completely."

"…"

Azula smiled, she had finally found a nerve, "He left you, just like that daddy of yours."

Nyikani turned around and stalked closer to Azula, who only smiled more, "Sorry, is the death of that traitorous father of yours a sensitive matter?"

"I oughta kill you right now." Nyikani said bluntly, nobody insulted her father.

"I thought killing wasn't your style." Azula sneered.

"Every rule needs an exception."

The rest of the groups' eyes widened with shock, "Nyikani…" she heard Aang say.

Sokka stepped up and put his hand on Nyikani's shoulder, "She's just baiting you again." He said.

"Why don't you go ahead and do it?" Azula egged on, "I'm completely powerless."

Nyikani stood still for a moment, her eyes were unreadable, but then a small smile appeared on her face, "I could," she said, "But I don't think I will."

Azula's smile disappeared, "Why not?" She asked, her voice not quite as cool as before.

"Because you want me to." Nyikani said, she put her sais in their holders, "And the last thing I want to do is what you want." Then she turned around and began walking away, everyone else did the same.

"It's a trap, don't say I didn't warn you." Azula told them, Aang and Toph looked back.

"IGNORE!" Sokka shouted.

"So, Sokka's your name, right?" Azula continued, "My favorite prisoner used to mention you _all _the time."

Sokka stopped and turned around as Azula kept talking.

"She was convinced you were going to come rescue her. Of course, you never came, and she gave up on you."

Sokka looked away as his eyes welled up with tears, then in a fit of rage he yelled and ran at Azula.

Azula smiled, "Come and get it…" she muttered under her breath, hidden in her sleeve was a knife ready to sail right through Sokka's stomach.

Toph knew this was a trap and acted quickly, she brought up a rock and sent it flying at Azula, it trapped her hand with the dagger against the wall. Sokka looked Azula right in the eye, "Where. Is. Suki?" He demanded.

"Where's Suki?" Sokka asked once more, he grew angrier at Azula's silence, "**Answer me!**"

Aang put his hand on Sokka's shoulder, "Sokka, she won't talk."

Sokka didn't seem to here, and turned back to Azula, "Where are you keeping her?"

As Sokka waited for an answer Nyikani felt a rush of energy, the eclipse was over; she just hoped Azula didn't figure it out too soon.

"Oh, sounds like the firebending's back on." Azula said, then suddenly her foot came up and created a strip of blue fire, Sokka managed to just barely get out of the way, after that Azula busted from her rock handcuffs and attacked Aang.

"Dad's all the way at the end of the hall then down a secret stairway on the left." She told the group, "I'm sure he'd be more than happy to see you now." And with that she ran off.

"I fell for it!" Sokka said in defeat, "I used up all our time."

Toph turned to look at him, "It's not your fault, Sokka. Azula was ready for us, she had every move planned out."

Sokka looked down, "And now it's too late…"

"Maybe it's not too late." Aang said, "The eclipse is over, but I can face the Firelord anyway."

"No, that's not a good idea." Nyikani told him.

"But I'm ready. I came here with a job to do and everyone's counting on me!"

"The Firelord knew we were coming this time." Toph pointed out, "We thought we had surprise on our side, but we didn't, it just wasn't our day. What we need to do now, is go help our friends."

Aang looked down, "I guess you guys are right…"

Sokka put a reassuring hand on his shoulder, "You'll have another chance, I know you will."

Aang nodded, and the group headed for the exit.

**Outside…**

Everyone stood and watched as an entire fleet of airships emerged along with a small platoon of war balloons, Aappa caught Katara's eye as he flew in.

"They're back!" She said, she ran up to the bison and saw Aang's unhappy face.

"It was all a trap!" Sokka exclaimed as he climbed off of Aappa, "Azula knew we were coming and she's plotted every move! We just gotta get to the beach as fast as we can, if we can make it to the submarines maybe we can get away safely."

"They've got air power, but so do I." Aang said, he whipped out his glider, "I'm gonna do what I can to slow them down." and with that he took off.

Katara followed his lead, "Aappa, you and I can help too."

Nyikani and Sokka looked at each other, then to the platoon, "Everyone!" Sokka called out, "Let's get back to the subs!"

The troops were going at top speed when Aang and Katara returned, everyone stopped when Sokka looked up at the sky, "Try and find cover! I think we're about to see some bombs!"

At his command Toph created a stone shield for them to hide under. Everyone waited for the bombing to stop, but something wasn't right, the air ships weren't turning around…

Katara spoke everyone's thoughts, "Why aren't they turning around to attack us again?"

"They're headed for the beach…" Aang thought out loud, then it hit him, "They're gonna destroy the submarines!"

"How are we all gonna escape?" Sokka asked.

Hakoda and Bato walked up, "We're not." Hakoda said.

Sokka turned around, "Then our only choice is to stand and fight! We have the Avatar, we can still win."

"Yes, with the Avatar we could still win." Hakoda continued, "On _another _ day. You kids have to leave, you have to escape on Aappa together."

"What?" Katara couldn't believe her ears, separate from her father, again? "We can't leave you behind, we won't leave anyone behind!"

"You're our only hope in the long run." Hakoda said sternly, "You and Sokka have to go with Aang somewhere safe, it's the only way to keep hope alive."

Bato spoke up, "The youngest of our group should go with you, the adults will stay behind and surrender. We'll be prisoners, but we'll all survive this battle."

"I've got some experience with Fire Nation prisons," Haru's father said, "It's not going to be easy, but we'll get by."

"They're at the beach already!" Sokka shouted.

The whole group looked on as the airships made short work of the defending waterbenders, and then the subs.

Nyikani watched as all the kids said their goodbyes to their parents and friends; she felt a stab of sadness in her heart while watching Katara and Sokka say goodbye to their father, it reminded her she had no one to miss, because there was no one left, which Azula had happily pointed out, anger boiled up inside her, _I'll take you down before this war is over…__**Naapa ni!**_(I swear it)

"Thank you all for being so brave, and so strong." Aang said to the troops, "I'm gonna make this up to you!" And with that the kids flew off to safety.

All the kids looked back, "I know just the place for us to go where we'll be safe for a while, the Western Air Temple." Aang told them.

Everyone was exhausted and disappointed, and the thought of a safe place to rest sounded pleasing to more than one of them, but they had no clue just _who _was following them…

**I know it's not healthy to compliment your own work, but COME ON! I am super proud of how this turned out. Oh, and did you Miazaki fans find the hidden refrence?**

**Sokka: It wasn't really hidden.  
>Ammypaint: I know!<strong>

**Anyway, SO...how will they group react to their unknown follower? Particularly one person? Will it end well? Stay tuned to find out! Read and Review please! And thanks for all the favorites!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Frig yeah! Again with the long uploads. OK, beginning of a total storm here, Nyikani has a SERIOUS decision to make, and I'll just let you guys read the rest.**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the OC's of her own creation.**

**Ammypaint: Hooray! Let's do this.**

Chapter 13

Everyone in the group trekked on towards the Western Air Temple, exhausted, disheartened, and sore. Suddenly Toph's face lit up as they reached the edge of a large ravine.

"Hey, we're here, I can feel it!"

Everybody else looked around and saw nothing, "Uh, I think your feet need their eyes checked." Katara said.

Nyikani stood with her ear to the cliff edge, "We are here, I can hear the wind blowing around something."

"They're right," Aang said, "We **are** here!"

Sokka looked around confusedly; then gave Aang a questioning look.

Toph was still in awe, "Wow…it's amazing."

Just below their feet was an entire lost civilization, building upon building, but strangely, they were all attached to the ceiling of the cliff faces, and small tunnels going deep into the stone, it was almost another world.

**Meanwhile…**

Zuko had also made it safely to the Air Temple, _Now I just have to find the Avatar… _He looked around, this was the same spot where he had begun his hunt for the Avatar, a rush of guilt went through him as he remembered how supportive his uncle had been, even though Zuko himself had not listened. His thoughts were cut short when he spotted Aappa flying by, worried about being spotted Zuko quickly hid behind a pillar, how was he supposed to win their trust if he was afraid to even be seen by them?

Meanwhile Katara had stopped Aang in order to discuss their next plan.

"So, what's the new plan?" Aang asked.

"Well," Sokka began, "if you ask me, the new plan, is the old plan. You just have to master all four elements and confront the Firelord before the comet comes."

Aang sat back and played with a rock, "Oh yeah, that's great; no problem, I'll just _do _that." He said sarcastically.

"Aang, no one said it was gonna be easy." Katara told them.

"Well, it's not even gonna be possible! Where am I supposed to get a firebending teacher?"

Katara thought for a moment, "We could look for Jong-Jong."

"Yeah, right." Aang said with more sarcasm, "Like we'll ever run into Jong-Jong again."

Toph spoke up, "Whose-, oh never mind."

"If it's important we'll find out." Nyikani said, she looked down at the ground for a moment, then spoke again, "Aang, I'm still a firebender."

"No, I don't want you hurting yourself to try and teach me."

"But you need to learn firebending-"

"You're not going to put yourself in danger so I can learn how to bend."

Nyikani held Aang's gaze stubbornly, but submitted to his decision and looked away, "Fine…"

Suddenly Aang hopped up and grabbed his glider, "Oh well, guess we can't come up with anybody." He ran off to the ledge with Momo, "Why don't we just take a nice tour around the temple!" And with that he was off.

"What's up with him?" Toph asked.

Sokka was thinking hard, "There's gotta be someone who can teach him firebending…"

**Meanwhile…**

"How am I supposed to convince these people I'm on their side!?" Zuko said in frustration, he thought for a moment, "What would Uncle do?"

"_Zuko, you have to look within yourself, to save yourself from your other self; only then, will your true self, reveal itself." _ Zuko paused, then face palmed, "Uh, even when I'm talking for him I can't figure out what he means… What would Azula do?"

"_Listen, Avatar. I can join your group, or I can do something unspeakably horrible to you and your friends, your choice!" _ "…I guess I'm not that good at impersonations… What would Nyikani do?" Zuko was silent…

"…_I…I don't go where I'm not needed, so…that clearly means you need my help…__**mzuri.**__"_(goodly) "I think that means badly…" The badgerfrog simple croaked monotonously.

Zuko looked down, "I could really use her help right now…" He thought out loud, it would be nice to have someone who was already on good terms with the Avatar's group by his side; then again, _he _wasn't on very good terms with _her_. "It's not like she has any reason to help me." Another rush of guilt, before it was all over, he was going to try and fix things between them.

Meanwhile the Gaang was having trouble getting Aang off his glider, Aappa was in hot pursuit of Aang and Momo.

"Aang, I think we should be making some plans about our future!" Sokka called from Aappa.

"Ok," Aang yelled back as he pulled in to land on a small pavilion, "We can do that while I show you the giant Pai Cho (I don't know how to spell Pai Sho,-see?) Table!"

Everyone got off of Aappa as Aang continued, "Oh and you're gonna **love **the 'All-Day Echo Chamber'!"

"I think that'll have to wait." Toph said.

Everyone looked at her questioningly, suddenly Nyikani stood rigid, that presence, it was familiar, way too familiar.

Everybody turned around, when Aappa moved out of the way lo and behold, guess who was there?

"Hello, Zuko here."

Everyone took their fighting stance, Sokka reached for his boomerang, Aang raised his staff, Toph took her position, Katara positioned herself for waterbending, Nyikani stood sideways, she was barely looking at him, but her hands were clutching her said daggers so hard her knuckles were white and there was a series of mixed emotions going through her eyes, and Cado was nowhere to be seen.

Zuko couldn't believe his eyes, Nyikani was all right! She must have escaped, and she had even found the group, but his joy quickly melted into disappointment, she was barely looking at him. When he caught a glimpse of her eyes, they were almost unreadable, almost. "I heard you guys flying around down there, so…I just thought I'd wait for you here." Zuko said, suddenly Aappa walked up and roared at him, then promptly licked him, much to Aang's surprise. But Zuko wiped off the slobber and kept talking, "I know you must be surprised to see me here."

"Not really." Sokka said, "Since you followed us all over the world."

"R-right, well-uh….anyway w-what I wanted to tell you about, is that I've changed." Nyikani was having trouble listening to him, _What is he doing? Is he trying to prove something? _One thing was for sure, he sounded really awkward.

And I-uh, I'm good now… And, well I think I should join your group, -oh! And I can teach firebending…-to you." Everyone stood in disbelief.

"See, I-uh-"

"You wanna _what now?_" Toph cut him off.

"You can't possibly think that **any **of us would _trust _you can you? I mean how stupid do you think we are?!" Katara snapped.

"Yeah," Sokka joined in, "All you've ever done is try to hunt us down and try to capture Aang."

"I've done some good things," Zuko replied, "I mean; I could've stolen your bison in Ba Sing Se, but I set him free, that's something!" As if to back him up Aappa licked him once more.

"Aappa does seem to like him." Toph pointed out.

Sokka disagreed, "He probably just covered himself in honey or something so Aappa would lick him, I'm not buying it!"

"I can understand why you wouldn't trust me, and I know I've made some mistakes in the past."

"Like when you attacked our village?" Sokka jabbed.

"Or when you stole my mother's necklace and used it to track us down and capture us?" Katara shot.

"Look, I-**agh!**" Zuko was cut short when suddenly a shape appeared out of nowhere and rammed him, pinning him to the ground, it was Cado.

Zuko re-focused, only to see Cado's snarling face; he could see the pure hate burning in the lionwolf's golden eyes. A deep, dreadful growl was echoing throughout the pavilion, Cado's gleaming jaws mere inches from Zuko's exposed throat, but Cado decided he wouldn't waste his fangs. The lionwolf unsheathed his claws, and raised his left paw to strike down, Zuko was completely frozen with fear, because he knew Cado truly would attempt to take his life, everyone else looked in shock as his paw came down, when suddenly-

"_**Kuacha!**_"(stop) Everybody turned around and looked at Nyikani with complete and utter surprise, of all the people to call him off, _Nyikani?_

"_**Kutolewa."**_(release) Cado instantly stopped and looked at his master sideways, his eyes just couldn't seem to compute what she was saying, but nonetheless he lowered his paw. Cado returned his attention back to Zuko; he began to growl again and moved his face closer to Zuko's-

"_**SASA!"**_(now) Before Nyikani even finished her word Cado hopped off with a disgruntled huff and slunk over to Nyikani's side, where he stood rigid and ready to fight. Everyone, even Zuko, was a little taken aback at Nyikani's actions, it was rare to see her shout at her friends, let alone her trusted partner Cado, and to protect _him. _Zuko didn't understand, didn't she hate him? Why had she scolded her own partner to spare someone who had caused her so much grief? This was going through the rest of the group's mind as well.

Zuko quickly stood up and continued where he left off, but he couldn't help but notice that Nyikani was somewhat looking at him out of the corner of her eye, "I-um, I know I've done some awful things, I was wrong to try to capture you, and I'm sorry that I attacked the Water Tribe, and I never should've sent that Fire Nation assassin after you, I'm gonna try and stop-"

"Wait, you sent Combustion Man after us?" Sokka exclaimed as he pulled out his boomerang.

"Well, that's not his name, but-"

"Oh, sorry, I didn't mean to insult your friend!" Sokka snapped.

"He's not my friend!" Zuko shot back.

"That guy locked Katara and me in jail and tried to blow us all up!" Toph yelled.

Zuko fell silent; this was **not **how he had hoped it would go. He turned to Aang, he hadn't made any threats or accusations, well, neither had Nyikani. "Why aren't you saying anything?" He asked Aang, "You once said we could be friends, you know I have good in me."

Aang looked away, then to his friends, who willed him not to trust Zuko, he thought for a moment…

"There's no way we can trust you after everything you've done! We'll never let you join us."

Zuko's eyes widened with surprise.

"You need to get out of here, now." Katara told him.

At first Zuko seemed to accept the failure, but then he looked at the group sternly, "I'm trying to explain that I'm not that person anymore!" He shouted, but Sokka took a threatening step forward, "Either you leave, or we attack."

Zuko stopped, it was over, "If you won't accept me as a friend," He said as he sat on his knees with his hands up, "then maybe you'll take me as a prisoner."

Katara wouldn't have it, "No, we **won't!**" She barreled Zuko over with a jet of water, "Get out of here and don't come back, and if we ever see you again, well, we'd better not see you again!"

Yep, it was over, Zuko gave up and left. Aang watched him leave, somehow he didn't feel like he made the right decision, Zuko _did _have good in him, but not enough to cancel out all the other things he had done, and he wasn't the only one struggling with this confrontation.

**Later…**

Katara and Sokka were discussing what had happened earlier, Aang was getting his sleeping bag while Toph listened to Katara and Sokka, Nyikani was sitting a little ways off, staring out at the ravine while hard in thinking.

"He wants to trust him, and feel sorry for him so you let your guard down, then he strikes!" Sokka explained.

"The thing is, it worked." Katara said, "I _did _feel sorry for him, I felt like he was really confused and hurt."

"He was." Nyikani said without breaking her gaze from the ravine, the rest of the kids looked at her expecting more explanation, but she acted like nothing had happened. Toph gave her a funny look, but decided she'd save what was on her mind for a more private discussion.

Katara continued, "But, obviously when the time came he made his choice, and we paid the price. We can't trust him."

"I kinda have a confession to make." Aang spoke up, "Remember when you two were sick and I got captured by Zhao?"

Sokka frowned, "And you made us suck on frozen frogs? How could I forget! I had a wart on the flap that hangs down from the back of my throat for a month!" He opened his mouth for emphasis.

"Sokka, I looked at it and told you there was nothing there!" Katara said.

"I could feel it! It's _my _throatal flap!"

"Anyway," Aang continued, "when Zhao had me chained up, it was Zuko who came in and got me out, he risked his life to save me."

"No way!" Katara disagreed, "I'm sure he only did it so he could capture you himself."

Sokka backed her up, "Yeah, face it Aang, you're nothing but a big prize to him."

"You're probably right." Aang said.

"And what was all that crazy stuff about setting Aappa free? What a liar!" Katara said.

"Actually, he wasn't lying." Toph pointed out.

Everyone(but Nyikani) stared at her, "Oh hooray!" Sokka said sarcastically, "In a lifetime of evil at least he didn't add animal cruelty to the list."

"I'm just saying that considering his messed up family and how he was raised, he could've turned out a lot worse." Toph said.

"You're right Toph," Katara said sarcastically, "Let's go find him and give him a medal, the 'Not as big a Jerk as You could've Been Award'."

"All I know is that while he was talking, he was sincere. Maybe you're all just letting your hurt feelings keep you from thinking clearly."

"Easy for you to say!" Katara snapped, "You weren't there when he had us attacked by pirates."

"Or when he burned down Kyoshi Island!" Sokka joined in.

"**Or **when he tried to capture me at the Fire Temple!" Aang said.

"Why would you even _try _to defend him?!" asked Katara.

"_Because, _Katara," Toph walked up and pointed to Aang, "You're all ignoring one crucial fact: Aang needs a firebending teacher, we can't think of a single person in the world to do the job, now one _shows up _on a **silver platter **and you won't even **think **about it?!"

Aang had already made his decision, "I'm not having Zuko as my teacher!"

Sokka and Katara gladly sided with him.

"You're darn right you're not, buddy." Sokka said.

"Well, I guess that's settled." Katara said.

Toph was losing her patience, "UUGH! I'm beginning to wonder who's really the blind one around here!" She promptly turned around and stormed off.

"Do I have a say in this?" Nyikani had decided to stop staring at the ravine and join the group.

Katara turned around; she had almost forgotten that Nyikani was there, "Of course, Nyikani." No doubt Nyikani would side with the rest of them; she must be the **last **person to want Zuko on their team.

"Personally, I don't want Zuko anywhere around us."

"All right, I think we've settled this-"

"BUT."

"But what?"

"Aang, Toph's right, you need a teacher if you want to even stand a chance against the Firelord."

"So who do you suggest?" Sokka asked.

"Well, if it's not gonna be me, then it has to be him."

Everyone stared with huge eyes; even Cado was surprised at what had just come out of Nyikani's mouth.

"You just said you didn't want to be anywhere near him." Aang pointed out.

"I don't, but I'm not going to let my hurt feelings get in the way of my reasoning." She said, "Aang, it's one or the other, we can't think of a single other firebender."

Aang looked away and thought hard, Nyikani was still suggesting she could handle teaching him, but was it a good idea? Was it right for him to allow his friend to possibly harm herself just so he could learn from someone he didn't hate? Or would it be worse to accept Zuko and have it backfire as another capture attempt… But something seemed off about his thinking, it almost sounded like Nyikani wanted Aang to choose Zuko, _That can't be right… _Nyikani probably wanted Zuko around the least out of the entire group.

At Aang's silence Nyikani took her leave, and left. (redundcance?)

**Meanwhile…**

Zuko had decided to take a walk after his previous failure; it gave him time to think about what to do next. Nyikani was there, maybe if all else fails he could trust her to teach Aang how to firebend, but his thinking was cut short by something interesting, Nyikani.

Nyikani took a few deep breaths and prepared herself, it had been a while since her last try at bending, maybe time was all she needed.

Zuko quickly hid behind a wall, he was on a neighboring house while Nyikani was down on a rock slab, it had been a long time since he had the chance to watch her firebend, and maybe this meant she was planning on teaching Aang.

_Keep it steady…_ Nyikani thought as she began, she kept the fire low and weak to start, so far, so good.

Confusion and curiosity filled Zuko's mind as he watched, why was Nyikani holding back so much? He had never known her to restrain her fire to such a degree, but he kept watching.

Things were going well, now it was time to turn up the heat. With a strong breath Nyikani put more power into her movements and breath, the flames gradually grew as she went on, _Good, maybe I can go at full scale. _It was risky, but she had to try, she felt her body melting into the familiar fluid movements she had trained with, _Yes! _She was about five steps into her regular power when-

_***SNAP***_

_No, no NO **NO!**___Nyikani's body flooded with that rotten, familiar pain, and she felt her knees give way.

Zuko froze, his eyes widened as he watched his former friend collapse to the ground, panting, his first instinct was to rush to her aid, but he had to stay hidden, Nyikani could not know he had seen her.

"_**Kin-ye-SI!**_" Nyikani cursed, she hit the ground in frustration. She was so close, and it completely backfired. Nyikani managed to make it to a sitting position, but she knew the damage was already done.

Zuko watched as Nyikani removed her outer tunic, revealing an old injury, that she had just re-opened. There was something unsettlingly familiar about it, then it hit him, that was the same spot where he had shot her him Ba Sing Se! Was that scar because of him? He attempted to lean and try to get a better look, but as he did his foot kicked a small rock, Nyikani froze and even stopped breathing, as did Zuko, like lightning he hid behind his wall, worried that Nyikani would realize who had watched her injure herself. He stood there for what was either two heartbeats or two years, then chanced a look to see if Nyikani was still there, she wasn't.

Nyikani was panting, she wasn't taking any chances in the state she was in. She toyed with the idea of just caring for the wound herself, if she could hide it, which she knew she couldn't, especially since Toph had been keeping one eye on her, figuratively speaking. _Great…just great. Now I have to go get Katara and tell her how I re-opened the scar…_ She knew her complaining was just a distraction from what was really going through her mind, this little accident was a statement, she was not meant to be Aang's teacher. Nyikani frowned, _One or the other… _Her personal feelings about the situation would have to step aside; in the meantime her wound needed a healing session.

Zuko knew for sure now, he **had **to join the group, and he was the only way the Avatar would be able to learn firebending, it was his destiny. Zuko sighed, fulfilling his destiny could wait until tomorrow, after traveling all the way to the Western Air Temple and being completely rejected by Team Avatar he needed some rest, time to go set up camp.

**The Next Morning…**

Everyone milled around while Katara got the rice ready for breakfast.

"We eat a lot of rice," Teo pointed out, "does Cado like it?" He asked Nyikani.

At the word rice Cado wrinkled his nose in distaste. "He can't stand the stuff." Nyikani said with a smirk, "But there's enough birds around for him to be picky."

"Has anyone seen Toph?" Katara asked as she filled the rice bowls.

Sokka yawned, "I haven't seen her since she stormed off yesterday."

"Maybe she's just exploring the Air Temple." Haru suggested, "There are some pretty fun spots to practice earthbending."

Katara still looked concerned, "I think we should go look for her."

Sokka didn't seem as concerned, "Ah let her have fun with her rocks, I'm in no rush to have her yelling at us again."

"We can go check for her." The Duke suggested.

"Yeah, I wanna ride that tunnel down to the hall of statues again." Teo said, "It'll work a lot better now that I've fixed my brakes."

And with that Teo rolled off with Haru and The Duke in tow.

Not a moment after they left Cado jumped up and ran down to the side of the pavilion, as everybody else got up a large rumbling echoed, it was Toph.

Toph dragged herself out of the tunnel she had made and fell to the ground, Cado had appeared just in time to cushion the impact.

"Toph!" Katara exclaimed, "What happened?"

"My feet got burned."

"Oh no, what happened?"

"I _just _told you, **my feet got burned.**"

"I meant **how**." Katara said.

"Well, I kinda went to see Zuko last night…"

Everyone freaked out.

Aang: "You _what?_"

Katara: "Zuko?!"

Sokka: "Aaugh?!"

Nyikani "Why?"

"I just thought he could be helpful to us, and, if I talked to him maybe we could work something out."

"So he attacked you?" Sokka concluded.

"Well, he did, and he didn't." Toph explained, "It was sort of an accident."

"But he did firebend at you." Aang asked.

Toph sighed, "…yes…"

"See? You trusted Zuko and you got burned, LITERALLY." Sokka said.

Katara was working busily on Toph's feet, "It's gonna take a while for your feet to get better, I wish I could've worked on them sooner."

"Yeah, me too."

"Zuko's clearly too dangerous to be left alone." Sokka said, "We're gonna have to go after him."

"I hate to go looking for a fight, but you're right." Aang told him, "After what he did to Toph, I don't think we have a choice."

"He's crafty, but we'll find a way to capture him." Sokka thought out loud."

"Maybe just invite him back here." Toph suggested as Aang and Sokka carried her to the fountain, "He's already offered himself up as a prisoner once."

"Yeah," Sokka thought out loud once again, "Get him to come back, and _say _he's our prisoner; then we'll jump him, and **really **make him our prisoner! He'll never suspect it!"

"You are a master of surprise, Sokka…" Katara said sarcastically.

"Aaahh…That's the stuff." Toph sighed as her feet were placed in the fountain, "Now I know how the rest of you guys feel, not being able to see with your feet stinks."

"Try seeing with your ears sometime." Nyikani teased.

As the kids casually went about their business, they couldn't possibly know the danger watching them in the broad daylight, Combustion Man had found them.

When the first attack came everyone was caught off guard, even Cado had not heard the sparks making their way to the pavilion. Aang and Sokka scrambled to get Toph out of the fountain and get to safety, as the group ran for cover a familiar voice rang out.

"STOP! I don't want you hunting the Avatar anymore!"

They turned around and saw Zuko standing between Combustion Man and their Pavilion.

"The mission is off; I'm ordering you to **stop**."

_Is he NUTS?! _Nyikani thought as she watched him fruitlessly attack the huge assassin, but it wasn't long until he blasted the Fire Prince off the ledge. Aang jumped up and sent a tornado flying, but Combustion Man jumped out of the way onto a nearby house.

Katara Summoned gallons of water, then rained them down on the assassin like shards of ice, but yet again he dodged the attack by shielding himself with his metal leg and arm, now he was getting mad.

Between explosions Nyikani took her sai and whirled around, launching her dagger at Combustion Man at high speed, he managed to get out of the way by a hair. "Dude come on that's all I can do!" Nyikani shouted as she joined the others behind a wall.

"I know how to get an angle on him." Sokka told Katara as Nyikani joined them, he stood at the corner of the wall and peeked around, carefully calculating the angle the sparks were coming in at, then with his boomerang in hand, he found it. "All right buddy," He said to his boomerang, "Don't fail me now." And with that he threw his boomerang with all his might, it curved and nailed Combustion Man night in the eye…tattoo. Sokka smiled in triumph and caught his trusty weapon, "YEAH, BOOMERANG!"

Everyone's jubilee was cut short when Combustion Man rose to his feet.

"Aww…" Sokka said in disappointment, "Boomerang!" The group turned around and took cover once more. Combustion Man shook his head and attempted to aim, he had no idea what was about to happen.

Combustion Man: *Inhale* ***spark* *spark* KABOOM!**

The explosion was so intense it took the entire half of the house down into the ravine, along with what was left of combustion man, all the kids stared in disbelief, suddenly something caught their eyes, Zuko had survived.

Everyone was somber when Zuko confronted them once more, Aang hung his head, Sokka and Katara looked on silently, Toph was sitting casually, Cado was sitting down but there was still a hint of hostility in his eyes, Nyikani had her arms crossed and was standing sideways, staring at the ground.

"I can't believe I'm saying this, but, thanks, Zuko." Aang said.

"Hey, what about me, I did the boomerang thing." Sokka pointed out.

"Listen," Zuko began, "I know I didn't explain myself very well yesterday, I've been through a lot in the past few years, and it's been hard."

Everyone kept listening.

"But I'm realizing that I had to go through all that, to learn the truth. I thought I had lost my honor, and that somehow my father could return it to me, but I know now, that no one can give you your honor, it's something you earn for yourself, by choosing to do what's right. All I want now is to play my part in ending this war, and I know my destiny is to help you restore balance to the world." Aang's expression softened, maybe Zuko really has changed.

Zuko turned to Toph and bowed respectfully, "I'm sorry for what I did to you, it was an accident." By now Nyikani had started to really listen. "Fire can be dangerous and wild, so as a firebender, I need to be more careful and control my bending, so I don't hurt people unintentionally."

For Aang, this was a revelation, Zuko truly was meant to teach him.

Nyikani's grip tightened on her arms, she knew that was partially directed at her. His words had stung her like a scorpion bee, she thought she had everything thought out, and then he goes and does this.

"I think you _are _supposed to be my firebending teacher." Aang finally said. "When I first tried to learn firebending, I burned Katara, and after that, I never wanted to firebend again. But now I know you understand how easy it is to hurt the people you love." He bowed at Zuko, "I'd like you to teach me."

A small relieved smile appeared on Zuko's face as he returned the gesture, "Thank you. I'm so happy you've accepted me into your group."

"Not so fast." Aang told him, "I still have to ask my friends if it's ok with them." He turned to Toph, "Toph, you're the one that Zuko burned, what do you think?"

Toph shrugged, "Go ahead and let him join." She then smiled and pounded her fist against her hand, "It'll give me plenty of time to get back at him for burning my feet."

"Sokka?"

Sokka paused for a moment, "Hey, all I want is to defeat the Firelord, if you think this is the way to do it, then I'm all for it."

Aang nodded, "Katara?"

Katara looked at Zuko, then back at Aang, "I'll go along with whatever you think is right."

Aang smiled, then turned to Nyikani, "Nyikani?"

A bead of sweat dripped down Zuko's face, Nyikani, what would she say? For the first time she looked Zuko directly in the eye, her eyes burned right into his soul, he knew what she was doing, she was searching him for lies or tricks, but finally she broke her stare and looked back at Aang.

"You are the leader, if this is what you believe to be right, then I will concede to your decision." Zuko's heart sank, there was that formal and proper tone in her voice, and that was never a good thing.

It was a very mixed response, Aang smiled and nodded. Zuko looked on, Nyikani had agreed to let him into the group, but she had made it very clear that she was only agreeing because Aang was the Alpha, and his word goes, and nothing more.

"I won't let you down, I promise!" Zuko told them with enthusiasm, but everyone else just walked away, all but Cado.

Zuko was about to trail after them when suddenly Cado stopped before going into the house, hate still boiled in his eyes, he bared his teeth and growled a warning at Zuko. Zuko could not speak the tongue of wolves, but he didn't need to, he knew exactly what Cado had said, _"Stay away from my human."_

**While Zuko is unpacking…**

Zuko had pulled out a painting of his uncle, he smiled at a fond memory of Uncle Iroh came into his mind, what would Uncle say now if he saw his nephew finally on the right path? Zuko's thoughts were cut short when he felt another presence in his room, it was Nyikani.

At her entrance Zuko quickly stood up, there was a moment of silence before Zuko attempted to speak, "Nyikani, listen I-"

"No you listen to me." Nyikani cut him off, her voice was low and cold, with eyes to match, "I don't know what's going through your head right now but let's get one thing straight, those people out there are my friends, **My. Family.** Do **anything **to put them in harm's way, you answer to **me. **And you r_eally _don't want that." And with that she turned around to leave, but Zuko bravely put his hand on her shoulder and stopped her.

"Stop."

"What?" She asked while looking at him sideways.

"I never apologized for what I did."

"It's not like it matters."

"Yes, it does. And I'm sorry for what I did to you."

Nyikani couldn't think of a response, what was Zuko trying to do? This kind of thing happened to her all the time, so why did this time feel so weird? Nyikani side-glanced at Zuko for a moment then headed for the door, she had walked up to Aang when suddenly she felt her belt.

"My sai!" She exclaimed, "It's still on that building!"

"No it's not." Aang said, "it's right over there." He pointed to a pillar; there was her said dagger, lodged into the rock.

"Oh, thanks, Aang."

"I didn't get it."

"Then who did?"

Toph answered this time, "Zuko did."

Nyikani stood there for a moment, then hung her head and groaned, "He is NOT gonna make this easy, is he?"

**He certainly won't! So, NEXT TIME, Toph will be having a little discussion with Nyikani about what's on her mind. How will Nyikani cope with Zuko on the team? Will things go smoothly? WILL you read and review? Tune in for the next chapter!**


	14. Chapter 14

**Didn't have to wait weeks for next update LIKE A BOSS! Ok, this chapter takes place during The Firebending Masters, it's a little short, but then again this wasn't a long episode to begin with. Mostly Toph and Nyikani talking, uncovering more about Nyikani's unusual behavior. DISCLAIMER!**

***silence***

**Ammypaint: ...Hello?**

**Aang: Disclaimer took a personal day, it's his dad's birthday.**

**Ammypaint: Fine, I DO NOT own A:TLAB, just the oc's I created, and happy birthday to Disclaimer's dad, Copyright. Now ON WITH THE STORY!**

Chapter 14

"Listen everybody." Zuko said, "I've got some pretty bad news, I've lost my stuff."

"Don't look at me, I didn't touch your stuff!" Toph said hastily.

"Cado." Nyikani said in a questioning tone, Cado's head popped up and he quickly pleaded innocent with a bark.

"I'm talking about my firebending… It's gone."

The silence was broken by a rude laugh from Katara, "I'm sorry." She said, "I'm just laughing at the irony. You know how it would've been nice for us if you'd lost your bending a long time ago?"

"Well it's not lost; it's just…weaker for some reason."

"_**Labda wewe si tu mazuri kama unafikiri ni**_."(maybe you are just not as good as you think you are) Nyikani said with a coldly casual tone as she ate her dinner.

"…Ouch." Was all Toph said.

Zuko looked at the girls with an irritated face, but thought for a moment, "I bet it's because I changed sides." He thought out loud.

"That's ridiculous." Katara said.

"I don't know, maybe it isn't." Aang said, "Maybe your firebending comes from rage." He said to Zuko, "And you just don't have enough anger to fuel it the way you used to."

"Soooo…All we need to do is make Zuko angry!" Sokka concluded, "Easy enough!" He took his sword and began poking Zuko with the handle, he was really enjoying himself when-

"**OK! CUT IT OUT!**" Zuko yelled at Sokka, then he turned to everyone else, "Look, even if you're right, I don't want to rely on hate and anger anymore, there has to be another way."

"If a pup wants to learn how to hunt, he goes to the first hunter of the pack…er, pride…" Nyikani said without looking up.

"What does that mean?" Zuko asked.

"You're gonna need to learn to draw your firebending from a different source." Toph explained,  
>I recommend, the original source."<p>

"So how's he supposed to do that?" Sokka joked, "By jumping into a volcano?!"

"No. Like Nyikani said, Zuko needs to go back to whatever the original source of firebending is, in other words, the first benders."

Sokka paused, "So, is it jumping into a volcano?"

**The next day…**

Zuko and Aang were ready to take off for the Sun Warrior Ruins; they got Aappa ready as everyone said their goodbyes.

"Have fun soaking up ancient Sun Warrior energy." Sokka told them.

Katara came up and hugged Aang, "Hurry back."

"Good luck, Twinkle Toes." Toph noticed that most of the farewells were directed towards Aang, so she decided to break the pattern, "You too, Zuko!" She told him with a friendly punch to the arm.

"Uh, thanks." Zuko said as he rubbed his arm, he and Aang were just about to climb on when Nyikani appeared. "Hey," She said to both boys, "Good luck… And don't go and get eaten by dragons or something!"

"Why don't you come with us?" Aang offered.

Nyikani's face grew slightly more serious, "My inability comes from a different problem."

Aang was a little disheartened by her answer, but he knew what she meant. And with that they set off for the ruins.

**Later that day…**

With nothing to do but wait for Aang and Zuko to come back, Nyikani decided she might as well try some more bending practice; she was taking her stance when a voice sounded out behind her.

"You know you _just _got that scar re-healed." It was Toph, Nyikani turned around and saw her wry smile.

"I almost thought you were Sokka." Nyikani said.

"What does that mean?"

"I almost threw a rock at you." There was a moment of silence, then Nyikani spoke again. "Soo… Why are you here?"

"You've been acting weird ever since we got to the Air Temple, I wanna know why." Toph said.

"I have not." Nyikani disagreed.

"Ok, I didn't want to point it out, but more specifically you've been acting weird ever since Zuko showed up."

Nyikani fell silent, figures the blind girl would notice first. "Well having my ex-boyfriend around is not something I enjoy."

"Yeah but you've been acting _really _weird."

Nyikani looked away and said nothing.

"I've seen you blow up battlements, take out Dai Li agents, and even surprise Azula, but when this one guy shows up you don't know what to do, what is it with you? Is it because he attacked you?"

"No, that happens all the time."

"Because he betrayed you?"

"No! I've been attacked, betrayed, stepped on, hunted, injured, cut, stabbed, burned, lied to, manipulated, a thousand times over!"

"So what makes this time so different?" Toph pressed.

"**Nobody ever came back and apologized for it!**" Nyikani finally shouted.

So that was it, Toph realized what she was trying to say. Nyikani could easily handle being betrayed or attacked, because it was something she was accustomed to, it happened all the time, people would turn on her and then disappear from her life, but she had no idea how to react to someone that came back and said they were sorry.

"And of all the people to pull that on me, it had to be him." Nyikani said.

"The guy you actually had feelings for?"

"W- I don't have feelings for him!" Nyikani snapped, her face was beginning to turn red.

Toph was starting to enjoy herself, "You mean there's _nothing _you like about him?"

"No way! He's stubborn, impatient, temperamental, and he looks at me with those stupid eyes, I can't stand it! …you could be standing in the busiest square in Ba Sing Se during rush hour, but the way he looks at you… he makes you feel like you're the only two people in the Earth Kingdom…" Nyikani's voice was quieting down, like she was picturing it in her mind.

Toph stared at her, "Yep, definitely don't have feelings for him."

Nyikani stopped and was silent, then she hung her head, "*sigh* Ok, maybe I still have _some _feelings left for him." She confessed, "But that's what makes it so weird."

"What? That you still like him?" Toph asked.

"Yes!" Nyikani pointed her finger at Toph for emphasis, "Whenever this kind of thing happens, I have no problem just hating people!"

"But…"

"But this time, as hard as I try to tell myself I don't care anymore, I know it's a lie." Nyikani's eyes darkened, she was glad Toph couldn't see. Of all the things to bring her down, it was going to be something as silly as feelings?

"So you still hate him?" Toph asked, more in the form of a statement rather than a question.

"Yeah but, it's weird. I'm mad at him, but I still have feelings for him… for _whatever _reason!" Nyikani said, her voice was irritated; she was just about done talking about this. "You know, if it's all the same to you, Toph, I think I'm done talking about this, I'll work it out later."(redundance!)

Toph felt Nyikani's feet begin to move away, "Maybe you feel so weird because you know it wasn't on purpose."

Nyikani froze, she had been suspecting that, but how did Toph know? "I'd try and deny it, but I forgot you can tell when people lie, I give up, how'd you find out?"

Toph shrugged, "Same as you, I figured even Zuko couldn't do something that bad."

Nyikani sat there for a moment, "… Figures the blind kid's the only one to get into my head…" She said finally.

Toph grinned smugly, "No one ever thinks to hide what they're thinking from someone's feet!"

"So," Nyikani began, "Any more deep personal feelings or conflicts you'd like to interrogate me about?"

"I'm good." Toph said, she felt like getting something eat, and got up to leave.

"Toph." Nyikani called.

Toph turned around, "Yeah?"

"Uh…thanks, thanks for…interrogating me."

Toph smiled, maybe her curiosity had helped Nyikani too, "No problem." And with that she went off to find some dinner.

Nyikani watched her leave, _Who would've thought that Toph's questioning made me say things even __**I **__didn't know… _She might not have known she knew those things, but she knew they were true, which made things more awkward. Nyikani sighed, she had done a lot of thinking today, but there was still a lot left and it was driving her nuts. _My inner conflict can wait… _She decided to follow Toph's lead and head to dinner.

**The Next Day…**

Aang and Zuko were demonstrating their new firebending form to everyone.

"With this technique the dragons showed us, Zuko and I will be unstoppable!" Aang said.

Everyone clapped as they finished. "Yeah, that's a great dance you two learned there." Sokka teased.

"It's not a dance," Zuko said with an irritated tone, "It's a firebending form!"

Sokka was still having fun, "We'll just tap dance our way to victory over the Firelord."

Zuko frowned, "It's a sacred form that happens to be _thousands _of years old!"

"What's this form called?" Nyikani asked with interest.

Zuko sat there for a moment, "…The Dancing Dragon…" He said awkwardly.

Everyone laughed at Zuko's miffed expression, but he felt kind of good about it, it meant that he was closer to becoming a real member of the group. Zuko looked at everyone's face, all but Nyikani's was full of laughter, he was a little brought down until he noticed that she cracked a smile. _Well, that's something. _Even she was amused, it was a good start, but there was a long way to go.

**There certainly is... Gotta love Toph and her mind-reading feet! So yeah, like I said it's a little short but it reveals more about Nyikani's internal struggle, don't you think Toph would make a better therapist than Sokka?**

**Sokka: Hey!**

**SO, how will things unravel? Will Nyikani ever come around? Will something come up and possibly screw things up? WILL YOU SAY IF THIS TINY CHAPTER WAS SUBSTANTIAL?! Read and Review please! And tune in for the next chapter, "The Boiling Rock" where it is very likely more crap will go down!**


	15. Chapter 15

**EPICLY LONG WAIT! My sincerest apologies, I lead a very busy life, but anyway! "The Boiling Rock", this turned out to be way longer than I intended, but I'm pretty satisfied with it, some serious crap goes down. DISCLAIMER!**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the OC's she has created.**

**Also Eathenyl belongs to EnyaandEathenyl, cameo in story!**

**ALL RIGHT, it would appear that I have misspelled some of the names in the story, don't fret, THEY ARE NOW CHIT SANG AND MAI! Enjoy!**

Chapter 15

Everybody was sitting back as Zuko poured some tea, "No one can make tea like Uncle," He said, "but hopefully I learned a thing or two. Would you like to hear Uncle's favorite tea joke?"

The Duke: "Sure."

Aang: "I like jokes."

Toph: "Bring it."

Zuko began passing out the tea, "Well, I can't remember how it starts, but the punch line is: 'Leaf me alone, I'm _Bushed._'"

Everyone stared at him, "Well, it's funnier when Uncle tells it…" He said with a downcast face, he resumed passing out the tea.

"Right," Katara said as she was given her tea, "Maybe that's because he remembers the whole thing." She teased with a smile. Everybody began to laugh, not that Zuko minded.

Nyikani was staring at her tea, then she looked up, "I remember that joke." She said with a smile.

"Do you remember how it goes?" Zuko asked.

"No." She replied, "But I remember it was funny."

There was a pause, "It's nice to get a chance to relax a little." Toph said, she took her tea, "It hardly ever happens."

As Zuko went to give Sokka his tea, Sokka stopped him, "Hey, can I talk to you for a second?" Without waiting for an answer Sokka stood up and walked off, Zuko followed.

Aappa lifted his head and watched the two boys as they passed by. Zuko looked at Sokka, "So what's up?" He asked.

"If…someone was captured by the Fire Nation, where would they be taken?" Sokka questioned.

Zuko was getting suspicious, what was Sokka planning? "What do you mean? Who was captured?"

"When the Invasion plan failed, some of our troops were taken. I just wanna know where they might be." Sokka said casually.

Zuko looked down, "I can't tell you."

"What? Why not?"

"Trust me, knowing would just make you feel worse…" Zuko turned around to leave, but Sokka stopped him by putting his hand on Zuko's shoulder.

"It's my dad." Sokka said bluntly, "He was captured too, I need to know what I put him through."

"It's not good, Sokka."

"Please."

"My guess is, they were taken to the Boiling Rock."

"What's that?"

"The highest security prison in the Fire Nation."

Sokka's eyes widened.

"It's on an island in the middle of a boiling lake, it's inescapable."

Sokka thought for a moment, "So where is this place?"

Zuko looked at him questioningly, "Why do you need to know? What are you planning?"

"Nothing." Sokka said, "Boy, you're so paranoid." He accused.

Zuko frowned, "It's in the middle of a volcano between here and the Fire Nation, you guys actually flew right past it on your way here."

"What's it like?"

"I don't know." Zuko told him, he looked back at the group sitting around the fire, "Prison details are more of Nyikani's thing."

"**Ssh!**" Sokka quieted Zuko hastily, "I don't want anyone to hear about this, especially not Nyikani!"

"Why not?" Zuko asked suspiciously.

"Because she would actually try to do it."

Zuko looked at him for a moment, Sokka was probably right, but his thoughts were cut short by a yawn.

Sokka yawned casually, "Thanks, Zuko. Just knowing makes me feel better." He gave Zuko a friendly pat on the shoulder and walked away.

"Yeah…" Zuko said, unconvinced, "I'm sure it does."

**During the middle of the Night…**

Ever so quietly, Sokka snuck around the camp, Aappa was right over there. Slowly he stepped around Aang, eluded Toph, and tip-toed by Cado, Sokka froze when he saw the lionwolf's ears twitch, but continued when he simply rolled over. As he sneaked up to Aappa he made sure he had everything.

"You'll need this." A voice said behind him.

Sokka whipped around and came face-to-face with Nyikani; she lifted one eyebrow and wore an expression that said she knew exactly what he was doing.

Sokka wasn't even going to waste his time trying to find an alibi; he looked at the small sack and took it. "How did you find out?"

Nyikani stared at him, "'Especially not Nyikani.' You know, if you hadn't said my name I wouldn't have started listening."

"So what do you want?"

"I know what you're doing, and I'm coming with you."

"Why do you want to come? I was the leader, and it was _my _idea to stay when things went wrong, it's _my _responsibility to fix things."

"And _I _was right there too, Sokka. The beta is always by the leader's side." Nyikani told him, then a sly glint appeared in her eye, "Plus, like Zuko said, I know the details on the Boiling Rock."

Sokka glared at her, trying to see if Nyikani was being truthful, then gave in, "Fair enough, you can come. But you're gonna tell me everything you know on the way."

"Got it." Nyikani said.

Sokka began to climb onto Aappa, "And nobody else knows about this?"

"Not a soul." She told him as she reached the top, little did either of them know just who was waiting for them.

"Not up to anything, huh?" Asked Zuko, he was sitting on Aappa's saddle, waiting for Sokka to do something stupid. Sokka stifled a shout and fell to the ground, scattering his things. Nyikani wasn't quite as startled, she was more frustrated, and she knew exactly what he was going to say while listening to the two boys argue, "I'm going with you."

**While in the war balloon…**

All three kids were silent as the balloon floated on, Nyikani had given all the information to Sokka almost an hour ago, none of them were expecting such a long trip, as Sokka leaned back Zuko was routinely checking the balloon's furnace, Nyikani sat on the edge, she leaned up against a beam and closed her eyes.

"…Pretty clouds…" Sokka said to try and break the ice.

"Yeah…" Zuko replied, "…fluffy."

"Keep this up and you'll be able to cut the awkward with a knife." She said without opening her eyes.

Both boys looked at her, but the awkward silence dragged on. Sokka began to whistle.

"What?" Zuko asked.

"What? Oh, I didn't-, …say anything." Sokka said hastily, after a pause he spoke again, "You know, a friend of mine actually designed these war balloons."

"No kidding." Zuko replied.

"Yep, a balloon…but for war…"

Zuko frowned and put more fire into the balloon furnace, "If there's one thing my dad's good at it's war…" He mumbled.

"Yeah it seems to run in the family." Sokka said with a slightly sharp tone.

"Hey, hold on, not everyone in my family is like that!" Zuko quickly defended.

"I know, I know, you've changed."

Zuko looked down, "I meant my uncle… He was more of a father to me, and I really let him down…"

"I think your uncle would be proud of you." Sokka told him, "Leaving your home to come help us, that's hard."

"It wasn't that hard…" Zuko said.

Nyikani opened her eyes and looked at Zuko; she couldn't help but feel a little sorry for him, just like her: he had nothing to leave behind. "Iroh would be proud that you have found your own path." She told him.

Zuko turned around in surprise; he had almost forgotten that Nyikani was there. This was the first time she had said anything to him directly since he joined the group, though she had moved her gaze out to the sea by now.

"You mean you didn't leave behind anyone you cared about?" Sokka asked Zuko.

"Well, I did have a girlfriend, Mai."

"You mean that _gloomy girl _who sighs a lot?" Sokka asked in comic disbelief.

"Yeah…" Zuko said with a small smile, then his expression deepened. "Everyone in the Fire Nation thinks I'm a traitor, I couldn't drag her into it."

Sokka leaned back and looked at the sea, "My first girlfriend turned into the moon…"

Zuko wasn't sure how to reply to that, "That's rough, buddy." Was all he could think of.

"My first boyfriend threatened to rip out my guts and sell them on the back market." Nyikani said casually.

Sokka and Zuko stared, "And you were dating him, why?" Sokka asked.

"I thought he liked me." She said with a distant expression, "Turns out he only liked the price on my head."

"You don't have much luck with relationships, do you?" Sokka pointed out with a wry smile.

Nyikani looked at him sideways; Sokka could tell she didn't think it was as funny as he did, he glanced at Zuko, who was also giving him an uneasy look, then it hit him.

"Oh right! You two-uh… you were…I guess, eh… S-sorry…My bad." Sokka said while stumbling over his words, he had forgotten that Zuko and Nyikani used to be together. Sokka was about to drop the subject when something interesting came into mind, "So you were listening to me and Zuko talk about his girlfriend?"

Nyikani was still looking at the ocean, "Yeah."

"And you didn't feel, you know, awkward?"

"I don't own Zuko, I have no jurisdiction over who he wants to date, and it's none of my business." Nyikani said.

"Come on," Sokka pressed, "You're not even a little upset?"

"No, Sokka." Nyikani's tone was a little more forceful this time.

"Then how come you sound mad?" He teased.

"Because you're pissing me off!" Nyikani snapped, as harsh as she sounded her face looked more flustered, she looked at Sokka, then to Zuko, why were they staring at her? "What are you guys staring at me for?"

Zuko didn't have the heart to tell her, but Sokka did, "I'm impressed." Sokka told her.

"What?"

"I've never seen your face this red."

"**What?!**"

Sokka was cracking up as Nyikani folded her arms and turned away to face the sea again, her face as red as ever from the mixture of anger and flusteredness, the last thing she wanted was for Sokka to think she'd gone soft.

Sokka was still smiling, but they seemed to be back to the awkward silence, with Nyikani all riled up and over a subject that made Zuko uncomfortable as well, nobody was saying anything, he sighed, this was going to be a long trip…

**Later during the Night…**

Sokka and Nyikani were sound asleep, Sokka was leaned back against the wall of the balloon while Nyikani sat on the floor with her head resting on the wall also, Zuko stayed awake and tended to the furnace. As Zuko closed the small hatch door he also leaned back and looked around, Sokka was snoring away while Nyikani sat peacefully, _Nyikani… _

"It's really hard to sleep when you stare at me like that…" Nyikani said bluntly without opening her eyes.

Zuko flinched, he had expected her to be sleeping, but decided to roll with it, "Sorry, I was just wondering, why did Aang need a firebending teacher?"

"Because there was no one to teach him." She said.

"What about you? Why didn't you try?"

"Because I can't."

"Why?" Zuko asked, if this worked he might be able to hide the fact that he knew about her injury.

"You know why." Nyikani said, she opened one eye and looked at Zuko, "Weren't you the one watching me that first day at the temple?"

There was a pause, "How did you know it was me?"

"I could hear your heartbeat over mine; control your adrenaline."

Zuko tried to think of a response to that, nothing, so he decided he might as well go straight forward, "That scar was because of me."

"There would've been a scar there anyway, Lao cut me first, and it closed up."

"But it'll never heal."

"That's not what I think." Nyikani said, both her eyes were open by now, "Grandpa Kuzan used to say that 'A scar is a wound that _does _heal.'"

"So why does it look different?" Zuko questioned.

"'It heals without forgetting the past'." There was silence as the phrase sunk in.

"What about your bending?" Zuko asked.

Quiet met his question; _She must still be sensitive about it… _"I don't know." She finally answered, her tone becoming edgier.

"Are you still mad at me?"

There was a moment of silence, "I don't _hate _you, but yes, I don't think very highly of you."

"What do you think of me?"

"Right now?" Nyikani paused for a moment, "You're a jerk, who betrayed me, completely destroyed my trust, and never actually cared."

…Ouch, Nyikani's brutal honesty cut deep, "What can I do to make it up to you?"

Nyikani was silent, then she looked Zuko directly in the eye, "…Prove me wrong." And with that she resumed her sleeping, leaving Zuko to contemplate her words.

Nobody got any real sleep before they reached their destination, the Boiling Rock.

"There it is." Zuko said.

Sokka was up in a flash and quickly ran over to Zuko's side; Nyikani's head popped up and turned in the implied direction of the prison. Zuko continued, "There's plenty of steam to keep us covered, as long as we're quiet, we should be able to navigate through it without being caught."

The balloon rose as more fire was added to its furnace, as it cleared the cliff something went wrong, the balloon was sinking.

Sokka and Nyikani turned around and looked at Zuko, who was frantically shooting fire into the furnace, "We're going down!" He stated, "The balloon's not working anymore!"

As he resorted to shooting fire straight into the balloon Sokka explained their predicament, "The air outside is just as hot as the air inside so we can't fly."

"So what are we supposed to do?" Zuko asked.

"Out of the way!" Nyikani said, she pushed Zuko out of the way,(redundance!), then she turned to Sokka, "Keep an eye on the distance." And with that she took a fighting stance and began shooting a constant white flame into the balloon, which was beginning to, not sink…(ok the gist of it is that it's not rising, but it's not sinking anymore, it hovering!)

"What are you doing?!" Zuko asked, "You'll-"

"You wanna be a fried spring roll?" Nyikani snapped back.

"65 more feet." Sokka told them.

A bead of sweat ran down her face, _Maybe this wasn't such a good idea. _She knew she was straining her wound, but falling into a boiling lake sounded a lot worse. She didn't like being in regular water, let alone water above two hundred degrees. Nyikani tensed her muscles, she stood rigid, just a little farther…

"We're almost there!" Sokka said.

Nyikani gritted her teeth, "_**Kuja juu ya…**_(come on)" _Almost in the cl_-

_***SNAP***_

Her face went blank, eyes wide with shock as she clutched her right side, a groan escaped Nyikani's mouth as she sank to the floor.

Zuko instinctively reached out and put his hands on her shoulders, Nyikani flinched and flashed an angry look at him, but then turned her attention to Sokka, "How we doing?" She asked him.

"I think we-" Suddenly everyone was shoved forward as the balloon made contact with the boiling water, Sokka stifled a shout as some of the scalding water splashed onto his hand. The balloon skidded on the water for about fifteen feet and then sent all three kids flying as it collided with the land.

As everyone recovered from the crash Zuko spoke up, "How are we gonna get off the island if the balloon won't work?"

"We'll figure something out." Sokka said, "I suspected it might be a one-way ticket."

"You knew this would happen and you wanted to come anyway?" Zuko asked.

"My dad might be here, I had to come and see!"

"Uncle always said I never thought things through, but this…this is just CRAZY!"

"Welcome to the club." Nyikani retorted.

"Hey I never wanted you to come along in the first place!" Sokka snapped, "And for the record I **always **think things through, but my plans haven't exactly worked so this time I'm playing it by ear, so there." As he finished he began to push the balloon wreckage into the water, but eventually kicked it due to the heat it was conducting.

"What are you doing?!" Zuko questioned.

"It doesn't work anyway, and we don't want anyone to find it." Sokka explained.

"I hope you know what you're doing…" Zuko told him, everyone looked up at the foreboding fortress in front of them, "There's no turning back now."

Nyikani stared at the walls of the jail, "…I was always told I was destined for prison…" She said thoughtfully.

Zuko looked at her, then a thought struck him, "How did you get out of here last time?"

Nyikani grinned slyly, "Who told you I ever got in in the first place?"

"What?"

"Lao pulled a fast one on Azula, he told her I was in prison, they never got me as far as the transfer boat."

Zuko stared, he should've known, "So you don't know how to escape from here?"

"Hey, the only ever recorded escape from the Boiling Rock was by a waterbender by the name of Eathenyl, supposedly her waterbending skills were phenomenal, and good enough to get her out of the prison and all the way back to the Northern Water Tribe, but that was before they started keep the waterbenders in separate jails, who knows how secure they are now after 92 years." Nyikani explained.

Zuko looked at Sokka, "Know any phenomenal master waterbenders that were in your invasion group?"

"I'm afraid not." Sokka told him.

**Later…**

Sokka and Zuko walked out of the fitting room dressed in prison guard uniforms, "I hope these disguises work." Zuko said. Nyikani had returned wearing a female uniform, Zuko noticed the bandage wrapped around her stomach, "Are you still hurt?" He asked.

"I'm not hurt!" She snapped, "It's to cover my scar."

"Guys." Sokka began, "We just need to lay low and find my dad as soon as possible." When he finished a large group of guards ran down the hall, all three kids plastered themselves to the wall.

"Guards!" A male guard called out, "There's a scuffle in the yard, come on."

Each looked at one another, then obeyed and trailed after the crowd. As they followed they reached the main courtyard, prisoners stood in a circle to watch a guard and another prisoner fight.

_What's this idiotic guard going on about? _Nyikani thought, _He didn't bow? Really? This is such a waste of time… _She hated guards, they were all stuck-up and stupid, and this guy only proved her stereotype even more.

"Isn't that cute?"

Nyikani snapped back to attention, the guard was looking at her and the boys, she could tell that neither of them were expecting that either.

Zuko: "Uh, very cute sir."

Sokka: "_S-Super_ cute!"

Nyikani: "Adorable even!"

The guard seemed satisfied with their answers and resumed being stupid, at least that's how Nyikani saw it; he even tricked the prisoner Chit Sang into firebending just so he could throw him into the cooler! But Nyikani's annoyance took a back-seat to the worry when Sokka was called out to help the guard.

"Meet back here in an hour." He whispered to her and Zuko as he left.

While Sokka was working cooler duty Zuko and Nyikani headed for the lounge.

"Hey new guys." An older guard called out from his table.

Zuko and Nyikani froze, "I know it's the rule to have your helmet on at all times, but this is the lounge, relax!"

Both took their plates and walked up to the table, "But what if there's an incident?" Zuko asked, "If I'm not prepared someone could strike me on the head."

All three older guards laughed, "Give it a week, he'll loosen up." The female guard said.

Nyikani stood there for a moment, "I'm breaking mine in." She stated bluntly, then sat down next to Zuko. The female guard looked at her bandaged stomach, "What happened to your stomach?"

Nyikani paused, _Think, Nyikani, think! Training accident? Rhino kick? Dog bite?! _"Um…I fell…on a rock…" _Crap. We're screwed._

"Can the new guy ask you veterans a few questions about the prison?" Zuko said.

"No." The female guard said, "You can't date the female guards."

"Trust me," the older guard put in, "You don't want to." His statement was met with a teacup to the head.

"No, that's not it. The Boiling Rock, it holds the Fire Nation's most dangerous criminals right?"

All three guards nodded. "We were even supposed to house that psyco girl." The older guard pointed out, "What was her name…the Wolf Princess?"

"Yeah, I heard she's part leopardwolf, with an attitude to match." The other male guard said.

"Oh please." The female guard looked at her colleagues like they were children, "There's tons of stories about that one."

A spark of interest appeared in Nyikani's eyes, "Like what?"

"I hear she has a tail and wolf ears." The older guard said.

"Well I hear she eats raw meat and howls at the moon." The female guard said.

"And that when she gets angry she turns into a beast!" The other male guard told them.

"I heard a rumor going around that she knew the Fire Prince too." The female guard added.

Both Zuko and Nyikani tensed up at that one.

"Maybe that's why he left then." The older guard suggested.

"Not likely." The other male guard disagreed.

"Yeah, she was announced dead until she showed up during the eclipse." Said the female guard.

"She probably has nine lives too." The older guard muttered.

Nyikani calmly picked up her tea cup, "Eh, only a few of those are true."

"How do you know?" The female guard asked.

"Take my word for it." Was all Nyikani said.

There was silence for a moment, "So what about war prisoners?" Zuko finally asked.

**Later…**

Sokka stood on a watch tower, over-looking the courtyard, it had been an hour, where were Nyikani and Zuko?

"Hey there, uh…fellow guard. How goes it?" Sokka heard someone say, he lifted his eye-cover, "Zuko?!"

"Ssh!" Zuko told him, Sokka might give them away.

"So where's Nyikani?" Sokka asked.

"She was ordered to help one of the guards." Zuko said, he lifted his eye-guard, "Listen, I asked around the lounge, there are no Water Tribe prisoners. I'm afraid your father's not here."

"What?" Sokka couldn't believe his ears, "Are you sure, did you double-check?"

"Yeah, I'm sure…."

Sokka was on the brink, they had come all this way, and his father wasn't here. "No… **NO!**" He pounded his fists against the wall.

"I'm really sorry Sokka."

"So we came all this way for nothing?!" Sokka asked in disbelief. "I failed…again."

Zuko wasn't sure anything he said would help, "Gah, what would Uncle say?" He looked at the clouds, "Sometimes, clouds have two sides, a dark and a light, and a silver lining in between…" He thought out loud, "It's like a silver sandwich, so…when life seems hard, take a bite out of the silver sandwich…"

"That made no sense." A female guard had walked up to them, a familiar female guard.

"Nyikani?" Zuko asked.

Nyikani frowned and slugged him in the arm.

"Ow! What did you hit me for?"

"Shut up! You can't say my name here."

While Zuko was rubbing his arm, Sokka had a revelation, "Maybe we haven't failed after all!"

"That's the spirit!" Said Zuko, "I can't believe that worked, I didn't even know what I was saying."

"No what you said made no sense at all." Sokka told him, "But look," he pointed out to a single girl in the courtyard, "It's Suki!" Zuko and Nyikani managed to spot her before the call to return to their cells.

In a flurry of happiness and love Sokka flew off, leaving Nyikani and Zuko to wonder at what exactly just happened.

"Who's that?" Nyikani asked, Zuko simply shrugged.

"Hey you!" A nearby male guard called out.

Zuko and Nyikani froze, Nyikani slowly turned her head and saw the guard walk up to her, he pointed a finger at her, "I know who you are." He stated.

Nyikani was rigid, she couldn't even speak. In her shock she grabbed Zuko's arm.

"You're the one who helped out Ping; show me where you put the extra handcuffs, will ya?" As the guard turned around and started to walk away Nyikani visibly relaxed.

"I haven't been that scared since Tama left me in charge of the shop for the first time." She said.

"You can let go of my arm now." Zuko pointed out.

Nyikani looked down to see her hand still tightly gripping Zuko's arm, she quickly let go and cleared her throat, "Sorry."

"Hurry it up, newbie!" The guard shouted.

Nyikani turned around and looked at Zuko, "Stay with Sokka, I'll meet back up with you guys during clean up hour." She whispered to him, then she obediently followed the guard and left.

**Later…**

Nyikani looked around and spotted Sokka amongst the mopping inmates, nearby was the girl he had pointed out earlier, but where was Zuko? Her own question was answered when she caught sight of a prisoner standing close by, guess who it was? But she would have to give him grief about it later, everyone hid behind the stairs to hear what Sokka had planned for their escape.

"So listen," Sokka began, "I think I have an escape plan. I checked out the coolers again, the whole point of them is to keep firebenders contained, right?"

"Yeah…?" Zuko said questioningly.

"So they're completely insulated, and sealed to keep the cold in. Well, to keep the cold _in_, it also has to keep the heat _out_, right?"

"Just get to the point, Sokka." Suki said.

"Yeah, we're working off of borrowed time here." Nyikani added.

"It's a perfect boat for getting through the boiling water."

Zuko, Suki, and Nyikani all looked at each other; this was not a very sound plan.

"The cooler as a boat? Are you sure?" Zuko asked.

"I'm telling you, it'll work. I walked around the perimeter, there's a blind spot between two guard towers; it's the perfect launching point. I already tested it out, we'll roll the cooler into the water and just float with the current, it'll take us straight across, as long as we don't make a sound, no one will notice, and bing bang boom, we're home free!"

"But how are you gonna get the cooler out?" Suki asked.

"Yeah," Another voice said, "how are you gonna get the cooler out?" It was Chit Sang. He had overheard their whole plan.

Chit Sang hopped down to join them.

"What? We didn't-we-we didn't say that!" Sokka lied.

"Yeah, you heard wrong." Zuko told him.

"I heard you're hatching an escape plan, and I want in." Said the huge inmate.

"There's nothing to _get in _on." Nyikani said, her voice had a warning edge to it.

"Yeah, the only thing we're hatching is…an egg?" Sokka said. Everyone else sighed at his poorly thought out response.

"Ok, well I come with you or the Warden hears about this egg too."

Suki looked at Sokka, "I guess we have no choice…"

Sokka looked back at Chit Sang, "Ok, you're in." He then looked back at Zuko and pulled out something from his belt, a wrench, "Now, first we need someone to unbolt the cooler, from the inside." Zuko took the wrench and quickly hid it.

Chit Sang smiled, "Oh, I can get you inside."

Sokka and Nyikani watched patiently as their plan went into action; it was actually quite impressive how real Zuko's and Chit Sang's mock fight looked. Quickly Sokka pretended to look distressed and turned around, "I need back-up over here!" He shouted to the other guards. As the phony fight went on Nyikani couldn't help but think this was looking a little too real, but quickly snapped back to attention when the signal went off, Zuko firebended.

Two guards stepped up, "No firebending! Into the cooler!" One declared, both guards pinned Zuko down as he tried to make a break for it. Perfect, as Zuko was taken away Sokka, Nyikani, and Suki casually went about their business.

**Later that evening…**

Nyikani stood with Suki and waited, "Where are those guys?" She asked aloud.

"I dunno, but they better hurry it up." Chit Sang said with an irritated tone.

Nyikani turned an annoyed eye to him, but decided that talking to Suki would be more productive, "So, you and Sokka, you guys are together, right?"

"I guess you could say that." Suki replied, her face blushing slightly, "Though I haven't seen him since the Serpent's Pass."

"You mean you were locked up here all this time?"

"Yeah, but I knew Sokka would come and find me."

"He's a pretty dependable guy."

Suki looked at her, "You don't, I mean, you don't have feelings for…"

Nyikani's eyes widened, "Oh no! Not like that." She said hastily, "I mean, I respect him as a fellow warrior, but he's really more like a brother to me. Besides I-…" Nyikani paused for a moment, then cleared her throat, "Anyway…where are those guys?" Suddenly a noise began to approach.

Everyone turned around and saw Sokka and Zuko rolling the cooler down the hill. Nyikani and Suki ran up and helped support the makeshift boat.

"Took you guys long enough." Chit Sang told them, he looked over to two other inmates that had also been let out, "This here's my girl and my best buddy, they're coming too."

Sokka didn't have time to shoot down his demand, "Fine… Everybody in the cooler, let's go!"

And with that everyone pushed the cooler into the water, when it was in Sokka went over to a rock to retrieve his things, but something stopped him.

"Are you sure you want to go?" Zuko asked, "You're the one who said you wanted to redeem yourself, redeem your honor; rescuing your dad is your chance."

Suki walked up, "Your dad?"

"If I had just cut my losses at the Invasion, maybe we wouldn't be in this mess… Maybe sometimes it's just better to call it quits before you fail." Sokka said in defeat.

Zuko didn't agree, not one bit. "No, it's not. Look Sokka, you're gonna fail a lot before things work out."

Sokka picked up his things, "That's supposed to make me feel better?" He started to walk off, but Zuko wasn't finished.

"Even though you'll probably fail over and over and over again."

"Seriously, not helping."

Zuko went up to Sokka and put a hand on his shoulder, "You have to try every time, you can't quit because you're afraid you _might _fail." Sokka was silent.

"Hey, if you two are done cuddlin', can we get a move on?" ChitSang and his friends had already boarded the cooler and were waiting for the Sokka and the group.

"…No, I'm staying." Sokka said firmly, he turned around and looked at everyone else, "You guys go." He put a hand on Suki's shoulder, "You've been here long enough."

Suki placed her hand on Sokka's, "I'm not leaving without you, Sokka."

"I'm staying too." Zuko said.

"Count me in!" Nyikani added.

"Not me, I'm out." Chit Sang told them, he pushed the cooler away, "Let's roll, baby!"

All four watched as the cooler floated away, Sokka spoke everyone's thoughts, "We gave up our only chance of escaping… I hope we haven't just made a huge mistake." He turned around and walked away with Zuko, Suki, and Nyikani close behind.

It was mid-morning when the alarm sounded off, Chit Sang and his friends were caught. All four kids plastered themselves against the wall, "The plan failed, they're caught!" Sokka said, everyone shuffle faster along the wall, they were almost to the gondola platform.

"The gondola's moving." Sokka said tensely, it was now or never. Tensions were as high as ever as the gondola approached.

"This is it." Sokka said, "If my dad's not there we risked everything for nothing."

Suki took his hand, "We had to."

Sokka looked anxiously, "Come on, come on." As the gondola door opened a large, ragged man covered in tattoos walked out.

"Is that him?" Zuko asked.

Sokka looked at him, "My dad doesn't have a nose ring!"

Everyone looked on as the gondola emptied; Sokka grew more anxious, "Where is he?"

As the last prisoner walked off Sokka's heart sank, "That's it? That can't be it…"

"I'm sorry, Sokka."

"Oh no…" Sokka couldn't believe it, but something caught his attention before he could really feel bad, a guard's voice.

"Hey you, get off the gondola!"

Sokka stared in disbelief as Hakoda, his father, stepped off the gondola.

"Dad…" Was all he could say. He wanted so desperately to see him, but he couldn't leave everyone else to get caught, what should he do?

"Go." Nyikani told him, she had noticed the look on his face, "I'll get them back to their cells, Sokka, go see your dad."

Sokka didn't know what to say, he really owed her for this one, he quickly nodded a thank you and ran up to the gondola platform.

Nyikani smiled, she was glad that Sokka had found his dad, but this wasn't the time for mushy stuff, "Come on." She said to Zuko and Suki, "We have to get you guys back before we're found out." Both complied and followed her back into the building.

**Later…**

It had been a while since Nyikani had seen Sokka; she assumed that he was catching up with his dad. It was hard to focus on the task at hand, _Another dumb guard job… _She thought, apparently a prisoner was due for interrogation. _I can't wait to get out of here._ Suddenly she heard two familiar voices from up ahead, Sokka and Zuko, and Sokka had a plan, what luck! That was, until she realized Zuko was the interrogation subject.

What are you doing here?" The male guard next to her asked Sokka.

"I was just telling this dirty low-life what I think of him!" Sokka said angrily.

"Well, you'll have to do that later, he's coming with us."

Sokka stood there, "Why?" he asked.

"Because we have orders straight from the warden, that's why!" Nyikani said with fake intimidation, but while the male guard wasn't looking she mouthed the words _'I don't know' _to Sokka.

"Can I just get ten more seconds to rough him up a bit?" Sokka asked while beating his fist in his hand.

There was a pause, "Fine," Nyikani said, "Ten seconds." Sokka quickly ran in, punching sound came out of the cell, but Nyikani could hear what they were concealing.

"We have a new plan but it's gonna need a big distraction, be in the yard in one hour, you too Nyikani." He knew her sharp ears were listening.

Sokka quickly grabbed Zuko and thrashed him about when Nyikani and the male guard entered, "All right, that's enough." The male guard said, he pushed Sokka aside and grabbed Zuko's arm, taking him away.

"What are you doing?" Zuko questioned, "Where are you taking me?"

"Do I look like the Warden?" Nyikani snapped. Zuko's eyes widened, he realized that Nyikani was one of the guards taking him to…wherever the Warden wanted. A door opened and both guards threw Zuko into an interrogation chair, "I didn't do anything wrong!" he shouted.

"Come on, Zuko, we all know that's a lie." A familiar voice rang out.

"Mai!" Zuko said in astonishment.

Nyikani was standing outside the door. _Mai? That girl Sokka and Zuko mentioned? _She could tell that Zuko never really expected to see her again by the sound of that letter; she had to agree with Mai, it was a pretty crappy letter. She continued to listen as Zuko defended himself, stating that he did it to save his country.

"Save it?" Mai echoed in disbelief, "You're **betraying **your country!"

"That's not how I see it." Zuko said. "Mai, I'm sorry you don't understand, but I have to do what's best for the Fire Nation."

"And you think joining the Avatar and that stupid wolf girl is going to save your country?"

Zuko was startled by her last statement; Mai was starting to get harsh.

"Don't think I don't know about her, and you." Mai told him.

"What do you know?" Zuko asked.

"I know she's a psychotic criminal that attacked your dad. And you two were more 'affiliated' than you said."

Nyikani tensed up, so this Mai chick knew she and Zuko had some history. She kept listening, waiting for Zuko to defend himself or justify his affiliation with the "Wolf Princess", or at least respond to Mai's statement.

"She's not psychotic." Zuko said, "And she's a better person than she gets credit for."

Nyikani was completely silent.

"Everyone calls her a monster, but I know there's more to her than that."

"Oh, so you're siding with her?" Mai accused.

"I-"

Zuko was cut off by a guard running into the cell, "Ma'am, there's a riot going on, I'm here to protect you."

Mai glared at the guard, "I don't need any protection."

"I'm sorry, but I'm under direct orders from your uncle to make sure nothing happens."

Zuko thought for a moment, then out of nowhere he shot a flame in front of Mai. The guard instantly reacted and shielded Mai while Zuko ran out.

"Get off of me!" As Mai shoved the guard out of the way Zuko had already locked her in the jail cell. Hate burned from her eyes as Zuko took one last look, and then left to find Sokka.

Zuko ran down the hall towards the yard, Nyikani was being unusually quiet. The hallway quickly opened up to the yard, now full of rioting prisoners, they had to find Sokka, and fast.

"There!" Nyikani pointed to a group of people standing on the side. Both ran up to meet them, a guard came and grabbed Zuko from behind, but Zuko pulled the guard over his shoulders and threw him on the ground. Another guard attempted to rush Nyikani from behind, but she slammed her elbow into his sternum, he was down for the count.

"Zuko, Nyikani, good, we're all here." Sokka said, "Now all we need to do is grab the Warden, and get to the gondolas."

"And how do we do that?" Zuko asked.

Sokka looked at him, "…I'm not sure."

While Zuko and Sokka argued Nyikani and Suki were looking for a way to get the Warden.

"Hey, Suki." Nyikani said.

"Yeah?"

"How are you at climbing?"

Suki smiled deviously, this was gonna be a good plan.

"I THOUGHT YOU TOLD ME IT'S OK NOT TO THINK EVERYTHING THROUGH!" Sokka yelled.

"Maybe not everything, but his is kind of important!" Zuko told him, he facepalmed while Chit Sang was staring at something.

"Hey, uh fellas." He said to Sokka and Zuko, "I think your girlfriends are taking care of it."

Zuko and Sokka looked around Chit Sang, their eyes widened as they saw Suki and Nyikani headed for the tower. Suki hopped on the heads of brawling inmates while Nyikani quickly swiped a knife from one of the guards and ran at top speed, Suki leaped up and climbed the wall, Nyikani threw the knife into the wall and jumped up, using the knife as a tiny platform, and leaped off, grabbing a pipe with her hands while Suki used her feet. As they both reached the balcony Suki took out the first guard, Nyikani the second, it was a perfect tag team system, in no time they had reached the Warden's balcony, made short work of the last guard, and the Warden was face to face with Suki.

"You wouldn't dare." He snarled.

"Trust me, we both would." Nyikani said from behind him.

"Who are you?" The Warden demanded.

Nyikani grinned slyly, "_**Jambo, Warden.**_"

The Warden's eyes widened, "You!"

Suki tied him up and turned his headband into a gag, "Sorry, Warden. But you're _my _prisoner now." She shoved him into the wall while all the men finally showed up, all panting as they tried to keep up. "We've got the Warden!" Suki said.

"Let's get out of here!" Nyikani added.

"That's some pair of girls." Hakoda stated.

"Tell me about it." Sokka and Zuko said in unison.

Off they went to the gondola platform; even during the riot it was still well guarded. Guards shot fireballs at them in an attempt to stop them, but Zuko easily deflected them, "Back off, we've got the Warden!"

The guards looked and saw their Warden slung over Chit Sang's shoulder, they stepped down as the group boarded the gondola.

Suki opened the door, "Everyone in!"

Everybody but Zuko boarded, he turned the clutch and started the cable car. As it lifted off the station he kicked the brakes off, then made a mad dash for the departing gondola, he almost didn't make the enormous jump, but Sokka managed to catch his arm in time. "What are you doing?" Sokka asked.

"I'm making it so they can't stop us."

"Way to think ahead."

"We're on our way." Said Suki.

"Wait," Hakoda said, "Who's that?"

Everyone looked out the window and saw Azula with Ty Lee and Mai.

"That's a problem…" Zuko said, "It's my sister and her friends."

Nyikani frowned, "I'm heading up." She went up a ladder to the roof of the cable car. Nyikani saw one of Azula's friends hop onto the cable with excellent agility, she had never seen this girl. While the circus girl ran along the cable Azula had taken a pair of handcuffs and latched them onto the cable, propelling herself forward with her firebending, and Mai held on tightly to one of Azula's ankles.

Zuko, Sokka, and Suki all appeared on the gondola roof with Nyikani. "This is a rematch I've been waiting for." Suki said.

"Me too." Zuko said.

"_**Mimi pia.**_"(me too) Nyikani said with a glint in her eyes.

The first to land was the circus girl, hopping in front of Suki, next Azula swung her ankle and Mai landed near Nyikani, finally Azula landed in front of Zuko and Sokka. As the trio stared her down Azula looked at Zuko and Nyikani with annoyance and frustration.

"Two traitors breaking out of prison, what a couple you two make." Azula sneered with a frown.

"You're just pissed because I'm not dead." Nyikani said smugly, she loved making the perfect little Princess mad, but her enjoyment was cut short by a knife coming at her out of nowhere. She barely had time to dodge it before it could sail through her throat, Mai had thrown it. _Geez, I knew this girl could probably fight, but that was a dirty shot!_

"That was a cheapshot." She growled to Mai.

Mai's face did not change as she threw three stilettos.

Nyikani pulled out her sais and flung the stilettos away with the daggers, "What's your problem?" She asked Mai.

"You stole my boyfriend; don't expect me to be nice." Mai stated coldly.

"You know, technically I _was _his girlfriend first..." Nyikani told her as the fight went on. Mai's stilettos and knives were fast, but Nyikani managed to keep up. "Hey watch it!" Nyikani snapped as another knife flew towards her throat.

"What's wrong?" Mai sneered, "I thought you could fight."

"At least I don't fight dirty!" Nyikani shot back, she was losing her patience with this chick. As the fight went on Nyikani noticed that both she and Mai were getting more intense, things were starting to get ugly. _Just keep your cool, you can't afford to let out your Inner Wolf. _

"I thought fighting the psycho Wolf Girl would be more exciting than this." Mai kept up her jabs and insults.

…_no matter how much she's asking for it! _"Maybe you should move your knives as fast as your mouth!" Nyikani shot back.

Zuko and Sokka were handling Azula pretty well, he would block the firebending, and then Sokka would charge in with his meteor sword. Even though he and Sokka were fighting his sister, he couldn't help but pay attention to Nyikani and Mai fighting, a look of distress came across his face when he saw them fighting so harshly. Mai was definitely putting all of her hate into it, but Nyikani was trying desperately to keep her temper down, but wait, what was that? Mai had obviously said something that had just pushed Nyikani over the edge.

Mai was about to swing another stiletto, but she wasn't fast enough, Nyikani grabbed her wrist. As her eyes met Mai's there was something unsettlingly familiar in them, her pupils had shrunk, she had gone into wolf mode, "You want a real fight? I'll give you a real fight." Nyikani snarled.

Suddenly a voice rang out, "CUT THE LINES!" The warden screamed to his men.

Mai was fruitlessly trying to get the upper hand, but Nyikani was too fast by now, as she was assaulted by more knives, they were effortlessly whisked away by her sais. Nyikani was going to end this, whatever Mai had said to her, she had clearly crossed the line. With a growl she shoved Mai up against the wall of the cable unit…thingy, with sai in hand she aimed it at Mai's throat, eyes ablaze with fury, but even with all of that…

_I…I, can't…_

Nyikani's whole arm trembled, slowly she lowered her sai. Even if this girl had tried to kill her, and said so many nasty things, it didn't overpower the fear she felt inside, Nyikani was too afraid to take a life. But her fear was short-lived when suddenly she was bombarded by numerous jabs and pokes, it was that circus girl.

"Hey-ouch! Quit-WOULD YOU STOP THAT?!" Nyikani scolded, wherever the girl jabbed her, it felt like it was shutting down a part of her body, but it didn't seem quite right, judging by the circus girl's confused look.

"Hey, I chi-blocked your arm, but how come your shoulder froze?" She asked.

A light went off, "Ah! You're a chi blocker!" Nykani exclaimed, "You can't properly block the chi of someone whose chi flows differently." She told the circus girl with satisfaction. When her explanation was met with an inquisitive look Nyikani explained further, "My chi flows like a leopardwolf, instead of a human."

"Oooh…" Was all the circus girl said. Quickly she and Suki resumed their squabble, Nyikani was just about to return to her fight when suddenly the entire gondola shook, the guards on the island had stopped it. As the gondola rocked violently Ty Lee lost her footing and slipped off, she hung by one hand as their cable car still shook, "Azula! Mai Help!" She cried out to her friends, Azula glanced her way, and then kept fighting; Mai was too busy with Suki to notice her friend dangling off the edge of the gondola. Ty Lee's hand was slipping, she screamed and closed her eyes as her fingers left the gondola, but she felt something on her wrist, someone had caught her! As she opened her eyes she expected to see one of her friends, that was not the case, she had been saved by Nyikani.

"You saved me? But, I'm on their side." Ty Lee said, motioning to Azula and Mai, "Why did you help me?"

Nyikani paused for a moment; she really had just acted instinctually, "I'm a fighter, not a murderer." She finally told the circus girl.

Both girls stood up, Ty Lee thought about what had just happened, but returned to her combat with Suki yet again. Nyikani paused, that was seriously ironic, she had almost killed someone, and then ended up saving someone. Suddenly Nyikani felt a burning pain in her side, Mai had thrown a knife while she was distracted and it had managed to sail right through her scar. Nyikani shouted in surprise and pain. This was what she was worried about when she lost her temper.

Azula heard a shout and looked over at the source, Nyikani was doubled over. This was the perfect chance! Quickly taking advantage of the situation she shot a fireball at Nyikani.

Nyikani saw a blue ball of fire coming her way, she attempted to lift her left arm, but nothing happened, _It's still numb from that circus girl! _Switching to her right hand she managed to create a barrier with her white fire, but the force of Azula's attack had pushed her off of the edge. _Kinyesi, this is NOT good. _She was clinging on by her right hand, she tried to lift herself, but pain shot through her side as her muscles attempted to comply with her commands. _This cut is keeping my abs from working right. _As she worked out some way to get back up, a shadow loomed over her, Mai.

"I don't suppose you're going to help me." Nyikani said.

Mai answered her question by stepping on her fingers, Nyikani clenched her teeth. Was this it?

"Mai what are you doing?!" A voice shouted. Nyikani, was too busy clinging by her fingernails to put a face on it, but she kept listening.

Mai was about to kill that man-stealing dog, but out of nowhere Zuko seized her arm and yanked her away. Mai whipped around and glared at Zuko, "What am _I _doing? You're the one helping a criminal!"

"Mai-"

"You're really going to side with her? You're going to choose that stupid wolf girl over your girlfriend?!" Mai exclaimed angrily.

Zuko looked at her, "…You're not my girlfriend anymore." He said.

Mai's eyes widened with disbelief, but while she was being upset Zuko went over to the side of the gondola.

"**They're about to cut the lines!**" Ty Lee shouted.

_Kinyesi, I can't hold on much longer… _Nyikani could feel her nails scraping against the metal, her left arm was still numb, things weren't looking good. Suddenly she felt a hand on her wrist, was it the circus girl? Maybe Sokka, it felt like a guy's hand, she looked up to see who it was, it was Zuko. While Zuko hoisted her back up Azula and her friends were boarding a gondola heading back to the prison, "Good bye, Zuko." Azula said, her usual smug tone in her voice. Mai shot daggers through her eyes at Zuko and Nyikani. Ty Lee could feel a little remorse welling up in her, they were leaving these people to die… She thought about the girl that had just saved her, it didn't seem very nice to just leave them like this. Something inside her snapped, this was wrong, and she had to do something about it. Ty Lee hopped up onto the cable and nimbly ran to the prison.

Zuko and Nyikani were still looking at the prison. "Zuko," Nyikani began without looking at him, "did you mean that, back there?"

Zuko also kept looking out, he knew she meant back in the prison, he had almost forgotten she had been sitting outside during his interrogation, but the answer was still the same, "Yes." He told her.

Nyikani looked down, so he really did…

Everyone on top of the gondola climbed back down into it, "They're cutting the line, the gondola's about to go!" Zuko told them.

"I hope this thing floats." Hakoda thought out loud.

Everybody inside tensed up as they silently hoped Hakoda was right.

Two guards were sawing away at the cable with a saw (redundance!), when suddenly one or Princess Azula's accomplices came out of nowhere and incapacitated one, he dropped to the ground. The other guard dropped his end of the saw and attempted to stop Ty Lee, but soon found his chi blocked and he was out of commission. "What are you doing?!" The guard asked.

"I'm doing what's right." Ty Lee said with finality.

More guards came to put her actions to a halt, between attacks Ty Lee kicked the two stakes that were stopping the gondola away, allowing the cable car to move again.

As the gondola began moving again Sokka and Suki looked out to see what had happened, "Who's that?" Sokka asked.

Everyone looked out and saw a girl on the gondola platform, taking guards out with her quick jabs, she glanced back at the group in the gondola with a smile on her face.

Nyikani's eyes widened, "Hey, that's the girl I just helped!"

That's Ty Lee!" Sokka exclaimed in disbelief.

Azula and Mai were riding down to the prison, Azula could not believe her eyes, "What is she **doing?!**" She asked as she saw Ty Lee helping the enemy.

While Azula was being angry the Gondola the group was on had finally made it to the other side, Chit Sang threw the Warden into the now landed gondola on Hakoda's command.

"Sorry Warden," Hakoda said, "You record is officially broken."

Everyone ran to the edge of the island, "Now what?" Suki asked.

Sokka stopped and turned around, Zuko wasn't running, "Zuko what are you doing?" He asked.

Zuko looked at him, "My sister was on that island." He pointed out.

Zuko was really stating the obvious right now. "Yeah, and she's probably right behind us so let's not stop!" Sokka said in a hurry.

"What I mean is she must have come here somehow." Zuko explained, he ran over to the edge of a cliff, at the bottom was a docked air ship. "There! That's our way out of here."

**Meanwhile…**

Two guards stood next to Ty Lee, Azula glared at her, "Leave us alone." She told the guards, who bowed and then left.

"I never expected this from you…" She told Ty Lee, "The thing I don't understand is _why, _why would you do it? You know the consequences!"

Ty Lee shrank a little, she did know the consequences, and she had turned on her friend, but somehow, she wasn't as terrified as she thought she would be. "I…I did the right thing." She began weakly, but she could feel strength coming up from those words, "That girl saved me, and…and you just kept fighting!" She was almost shouting, but she caught herself and quieted down, "I guess…you just miscalculated?" Azula** had** miscalculated…she thought that she could intimidate Ty Lee, and manipulate her, but not anymore! "I **did** do the right thing! And I'm not afraid of you anymore!" Ty Lee declared.

Azula scowled, "No YOU miscalculated! You should've feared me more!" She took a stance and prepared to fight Ty Lee, who also got ready to fight, but before Azula could attack three stilettos came out of nowhere and pinned Azula to a wall. Mai had thrown them.

"Come on, Ty lee!" Mai told her, but guards surrounded them.

"Mai, why did you do that?!" Azula asked in a rage.

"Ty Lee is still my friend, and you're not going to hurt her."

"What shall we do with them, Princess?" One of the guards asked.

"Put them somewhere where I'll never have to see their faces again, and let them **rot!**" Azula snarled.

**Later during the night…**

The stolen airship had finally docked at the Western Air temple. Aang, Toph, and Katara all looked in surprise when Sokka, Zuko, and Nyikani waltzed out.

"What are you doing in this thing? What happened to the war balloon?" Katara asked.

"It kinda got destroyed." Zuko said casually.

"Sounds like a crazy fishing trip!" Aang said.

"Did you at least get some good meat?" Toph asked.

"I did." Sokka said, "The best meat of all, the meat of friendship, and fatherhood."

Nyikani gave him a funny look, but this was a touching moment, so she shrugged it off. At Sokka's cue, Suki, Hakoda, and Chit Sang walked out of the air ship. "I'm new, what's up everybody?" ChitSang said with a wave.

"Dad…" Katara said, tears welled up in her eyes as she ran to greet her father.

"Hi Katara." Said Hakoda, he wrapped his arms around his daughter.

Katara began to bombard Sokka with questions, "How are you here? What is going on? Where did you go?"

"We, kinda went to a Fire Nation prison." Sokka explained. Katara grabbed his hand and pulled him into a group hug with their father.

Zuko smiled as he watched the reunited family.

"You did a good thing." Nyikani told him. Zuko looked at her, she was still looking at Hakoda and his kids, but she was smiling.

Nyikani smiled, she turned around when she heard an exited bark from behind her, Cado. "Cado!" the large lionwolf reared up on his hind-legs and planted his giant paws on her shoulders, Nyikani hugged his neck. She cringed when his paw brushed against her bandaged wound, Cado looked at her with concern, "Don't worry, I'm fine pal." She said reassuringly. Nyikani hadn't really paid attention to how bad the cut might have been, but the adrenaline had definitely worn off by now, and the wound was starting to hurt. _Katara's not gonna be happy when she finds out I screwed my scar up…again. _She felt like sitting down, as she took a step her balance faltered, but someone had put their hands on her shoulders to steady her, Zuko. Nyikani flinched yet again, but this time she hid her face, "Thanks…" She said gruffly, she really hoped Zuko hadn't seen her face in that split second, she hated for people to see her blush.

"…Seriously, you guys didn't find any meat?" Toph pressed.

It was a good ending, and much to Nyikani's mixed cocktail of emotions, a successful mission.

**Very long-ish... I had a little trouble keeping to the story line near the end, I had to come up with a reason for Mai to still turn on Azula even though she totally hates Zuko now, but I think Ty Lee's part turned out pretty good, it was fun trying to capture her innocent, nice quality. P.S. I hope that I did a good enough cameo for **EnyaandEathenyl, it was a little hard to incorporate a waterbender into this part of the story, so I decided to make her a LEGENDARY PRISON ESCAPEE. So, obviously Nyikani's head is becoming clearer on, ahem, said subjects. How will the story unfold in the next chapter? Speaking of which, it might turn out to be a little short, maybe another duologue, but you'll have to wait and find out. Read and Review please!****


	16. Chapter 16

**FRIK YEAH CHAPTER 16. Decided to post this once I finished a big essay for class. "The Southern Raiders" is the current situation at hand in our story. Although this actually turned out longer than I had expected, but it's still pretty much a duo-logue, but anyway enjoy! Oh Disclaimer...**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the OC's she has created.**

Chapter 16

The sun began to rise over the ravine, everybody slept peacefully in the early morning. Cado decided to be an early bird and gently slipped out from under Nyikani's arm, as he stretched his ears shot upright, something wasn't right. The lionwolf stood listening for a second and then turned around to his sleeping master, nudging her while whining.

"Cado…" Nyikani mumbled sleepily, "…go back to sleep…" But Cado was persistent and began to nudge her harder and paw at her, his whines and growls getting louder. Nyikani frowned and pushed his muzzle away, "It's too early."

Aang rose from his sleeping place in Aappa's fur, with a deep yawn he smiled and looked around, what a nice morning. Aang stretched his arms, but suddenly Cado caught his eye. Cado had stopped bugging Nyikani and ran over to the edge of the pavilion, at that moment Aang noticed that the birds had all flown away. Suddenly a bomb came flying at Aang and the group, Aang grabbed his staff and with a powerful gust he flung the bomb away, which exploded with a loud crash against another building. A Fire Nation air fleet had found them.

Everyone awoke from their sleep. "**I'm up!**" Nyikani shouted as she shot awake. More bombs came, Aang closed the security doors to the pavilion in an attempt to buy the group some time to make an escape. The building was beginning to crumble under the impact of the bombs, a piece of the ceiling broke away and Katara was directly underneath.

Zuko acted fast and lunged for Katara, "WATCH OUT!" He shouted as he tackled her to safety.

Katara frowned, "**What are you doing?!**" She snapped.

"Keeping rocks from crushing you." Zuko said bluntly.

"Ok, I'm not crushed; you can get off me now!" Katara told him, as she ran off.

Zuko sat there, "…I'll take that as a 'thank you'…"

Haru and Toph earthbended a tunnel in the wall, "Come on!" Toph shouted to everyone, "We can get out through here!"

The group ran in, but Aang was having trouble with Aappa, although Aang wasn't the only person still there. "What are you doing?!" Aang asked in disbelief.

Zuko turned around, "Go ahead, I'll hold them off." He told everyone. "I think this is a family visit…" And with that he promptly ran off to face the fleet.

"Zuko, NO!" Aang shouted.

Sokka, Katara, and Nyikani ran up to help Aang. "Come on, we've gotta get out of here!" Sokka told him. All four kids pulled at Aappa's reins.

"Aappa this is no time to be picky!" Nyikani yelled in frustration.

The entire pavilion had collapsed; everyone was inside a rock shell that Toph was holding up, Aappa was still refusing to go.

"I can't get him to go in there, Aappa hates tunnels." Aang said.

"Aang, there's no way we can fly out of here." Katara pointed out.

"We'll have to find a way."

Everyone stopped pulling, "We need to split up." Sokka decided, he ran over to the rest of the group, "Take the tunnel and get to the stolen air ship."

Katara turned around. No, this can't be happening again… "**No! **The Fire Nation can't separate our family again!" She stated.

Hakoda put his hands on his daughter's shoulders, "It'll be ok, it's not forever."

Katara still didn't agree with this, but there was no other way. With tears in her eyes she hugged her father goodbye again, and then ran to Aappa.

Sokka did the same and climbed onto Aappa with Suki. Nyikani and Cado followed suit.

Toph put her hand on the rock shell, "I can clear that away and we can fly out through there." She said as she jumped onto Aappa's saddle.

"Um, there's an awful lot of fire in that general direction." Suki pointed out.

"We'll get through." Aang said firmly. "Let's go."

Suddenly Aappa exploded out with a rock shield on his head, which deflected Azula's fire blasts. Azula toyed with the idea of giving chase, but she had other problems at the moment, Zuko had shown up again.

Everyone stared in disbelief at Zuko, he and Azula were on separate air ships, but not for long. Zuko ran as fast as he could and catapulted from one air ship and onto another. The whole Gaang watched the fire fight ensue while Aang steered Aappa through the fire raining down from the airships. Suddenly there was a loud crash, Zuko and Azula's fight had ended in an explosion that had blasted both of them off of the air ship, but Aappa quickly flew down and Katara grabbed Zuko to safety.

Everyone looked as Azula kept falling. "She's…not gonna make it…" Zuko said.

But she proved him wrong when she bended herself to the cliff face where she hung on by a knife and waited for aid.

"Of course she did." Zuko mumbled.

As the flight smoothed out Nyikani looked at Cado, who was standing rigid, all his hair standing up, and his claws digging into the saddle, boy did he hate flying. "You can relax, Cado. The worst is over." She said with a smirk.

Toph smiled deviously, "You can relax too, Nyikani."

"What's that supposed to mean?" She asked.

"Zuko's just fine, you can stop worrying now."

"WHAT?!" Nyikani exclaimed, her face turned bright red. Everyone laughed at Toph's poking fun; well, everyone except Nyikani, and Zuko, who had also started to turn red.

Aappa carried the Gaang away from the remains of the Western Air Temple; it was time to look for somewhere safe…again…

**Later that evening…**

After much disputing between Nyikani and Sokka they had both agreed on a small island near Ember Island where they could make camp for the night, and then head to Ember Island for food and supplies. By now everybody was sitting around the campfire enjoying their dinner.

"Wow, camping." Aang thought out loud, "It really seems like old times again, doesn't it?"

"If you really want it to feel like old times, I could…chase you around a while and try to capture you." Zuko joked with a smile.

Everybody laughed, even Nyikani smiled, Katara was the only one who wasn't amused. "Ha-ha…" She mumbled in a low tone.

Sokka proposed a toast and lifted up his cup, "To Zuko. Who knew after all those times he tried to snuff us out, today he'd be our hero!"

"HERE HERE!" Everybody else (minus Katara) complied happily. Aang and Toph nudged Zuko in a friendly manner.

"I'm touched." Zuko told them, "I don't deserve this…"

"Yeah, no kidding." Katara rudely agreed, she got up and walked away.

Everyone stared as she left. "What's with her?" Sokka wondered.

"I wish I knew." Zuko said before getting up to follow her.

"What's with him?" Sokka asked once more.

**Later…**

Zuko had come to Sokka for some information about what had happened to his and Katara's mother, hopefully with this he could earn Katara's trust back.

"The symbol of the Southern Raiders…thanks, Sokka." Zuko told him.

"No problem." Sokka told him, "Thanks for stopping by!" As he said this he hastily shoved Zuko out of the tent. Zuko began to walk off when he heard,

"_Suki!_"

He turned around to see Sokka, who quickly played it off by whistling, and then returning to his tent. Zuko shrugged it off and turned around when-

***WHAM***

Neither had been paying attention to where they were walking and had smacked right into each other, as Zuko reeled back Nyikani groaned and made sure her nose wasn't broken.

"That hurt." Nyikani said.

"Sorry." Zuko apologized.

"Well I learned not to star-gaze and walk at the same time." Nyikani thought out loud, she then looked at Zuko, "I was just going to my tent, it's been a long day."

"Because the Air Temple blew up?" Zuko asked jokingly.

Nyikani chuckled, "That too," She paused for a moment, "You know, that was a pretty crazy hero stunt you pulled."

Zuko cracked a smile, "Were you really worried?"

"Of course, you jumped off a building and onto an air ship and then blew yourself off! Who wasn't worried?!"

That wasn't quite the kind of worry Zuko was going for, but he'd take it, Nyikani was actually genuinely concerned for him. Granted he did launch himself off of the face of a cliff, but still! Nyikani looked up at the sky, "It really is a nice night…"

Zuko agreed, it kind of reminded him of that fateful night. "It looks just like Ba Sing Se."

"You mean that first night we really met?" Nyikani asked, she looked back to Zuko.

"Yes."

Nyikani smiled a little, it really did. She could feel the old vibe coming back, the starry sky, the cool breeze, his eyes; it was all just like this. Nyikani could feel herself being pulled in. Both were coming closer, swept up in the moment, but just before their lips met, Nyikani shied away.

"I uh, I'd better um, get to my tent…" She told Zuko awkwardly. She shuffled away quickly because, like always, she didn't like for people to see her blush.

Zuko watched her leave and stood for a moment, they had almost kissed! If that wasn't progress he didn't know what was. With confidence in his mind Zuko set off to wait for Katara, he had something to prove.

**In the Morning…**

Nyikani was enjoying the morning with Aang, Aappa, and Sokka. Aappa was chewing on his hay while Aang and Nyikani talked and Sokka was making a flower necklace. (Wow, that sounded really lame on Sokka's part when I write it out…) Suddenly Katara and Zuko appeared, and Katara had a serious look on her face. "I need to borrow Aappa."

Aang smiled, "Why, is it your turn to take a little field trip with Zuko?" He joked in a light-hearted way.

"Yes, it is." Katara said bluntly, this obviously wasn't a joke to her, and Aang and Nyikani noticed.

"Oh… What's going on?" Aang asked.

"We're going to find the man who took my mother from me."

Nyikani and Sokka walked up to the trio as Zuko explained. "Sokka told me the story of what happened. I know who did it, and I know how to find him."

Aang wasn't sure this was a good idea, "Um, and what exactly do you think this will accomplish?"

Katara scoffed, "I knew you wouldn't understand…" She started to walk away.

"Wait, stop! I **do **understand." Aang told her. "You're feeling unbelievable pain and rage. How do you think I felt about the sandbenders when they stole Aappa? How do you think I felt about the Fire Nation when I found out what happened to my people?"

"She needs this, Aang." Zuko stepped in, "This is about getting closure, and justice."

"No, it's not." Nyikani disagreed. "This is about revenge."

Katara whipped around, "Fine, maybe it is! Maybe that's what I need! Maybe that's what he _deserves_."

"Katara…you sound like Jett." Aang said.

"It's not the same, Jett attacked the innocent." Katara said, "This man, he's a monster!"

Sokka decided to step in, "Katara she was my mother too, but I think Aang might be right."

"**Then you didn't love her the way I did!**" Katara snapped at her brother.

"**Katara!**" Nyikani snapped back in a warning tone, "That's enough." Katara was almost over the line, but Nyikani could sympathize with her. "I know how you feel, but-"

"You don't understand." Zuko cut her off, he was losing his patience, all he wanted was to earn Katara's trust and everyone else was getting in the way.

Nyikani paused; she didn't appreciate that rude cut off of Zuko's. "Alright look, I'm only trying to help." She told him with an expression that said she was starting to get irritated.

"Why?" Zuko asked in annoyance.

"Because she's my friend!" Nyikani shot.

Aang and Sokka watched as Nyikani and Zuko's argument got more heated, they were almost yelling.

"How do you know this isn't the right thing to do?" Zuko snapped.

(Aang in background: "He wouldn't…)

"I know because I understand what Katara's going through!" Nyikani shouted.

"No you don't! **You've never had your mother taken away from you!**" Zuko shouted back.

(Sokka in background: "He did!")

Everyone was silent. Nyikani's eyes were wide with surprise and anger; it took her a moment to reply. "…No, I haven't." She said to Zuko, her voice was quiet, but rigid and cold. "You know why?" She asked as she looked a Zuko, "My mother was never there in the first place. But don't you **dare **think that doesn't mean I don't know how it feels to lose someone I love!" And with that she turned around and stalked away.

Zuko stared in bewilderment, how could he have been such an idiot?! Calling Nyikani out on never knowing how it felt to miss her mother; but by the looks on everyone else's faces, her reaction was completely unexpected to all of them.

**Later that Night…**

Nyikani snuck up to Aappa, Katara and Zuko had opted to take this journey anyway. As Katara was getting ready Nyikani appeared right behind her, it had been some time since she had pulled one of her stealth moves.

"You can't stop me, Nyikani." Katara told her.

"I'm not stopping you." She told Katara firmly. "I'm just here to talk."

"…Alright."

Nyikani's eyes softened, "It's probably better that you face this man, but…be careful." Her voice got more serious, "Revenge is a dangerous luxury that can make you do things you'll regret later."

"I'll be careful." Katara told her, "Thanks, Nyikani."

Nyikani smiled, "Be safe, kiddo."

Zuko walked up behind the two girls, "Katara, it's time to go."

Katara nodded and walked past Nyikani to help Zuko load Aappa up with the supplies. Nyikani stood still, then began to walk away.

Zuko reached out and put a hand on her shoulder, "Nyikani stop." He said, "I'm sorry for what I said earlier."

For a moment Nyikani did not move, she reached a hand up and placed it on Zuko's. Zuko's spirit lifted up for a split second, only to sink lower than ever when she brushed his hand off of her shoulder.

"Just go." Nyikani said with hurt in her voice, she didn't even look at him, and quickly walked away before Aang and Sokka appeared.

Zuko felt terrible, he had done something even worse than pissing Nyikani off, he had hurt her feelings. (Bear in mind that this is no easy task.) He was so close to finally fixing things, they had almost kissed! And now it was all ruined because of their argument. Were things ever going to be the same between them?

**The Next Day… **

Nyikani wasn't in the mood to try any firebending, so she settled with some shuko practice, although she didn't expect to be interrupted.

"Alright, come on. What's the matter?"

Nyikani frowned in annoyance, "Beat it, Sokka! I'm in a bad mood."

"Nope, not until you tell me what has you in such a bad mood."

"You're pissing me off! _**Kupotea!**_"(get lost) Nyikani told him angrily.

Sokka put his hands up as if to admit defeat, "Ok, ok, I'll just leave since there's nothing wrong." To back up his statement he turned around and started to leave.

Nyikani sat there for a moment, "Wait, don't." She said, "…there is something the matter…"

Sokka smiled, "Was that so hard to say?"

Nyikani gave him one of her deadpan faces, "Yes."

Suddenly Aang popped up from behind a rock, "So there is something bothering you!" He exclaimed.

"When did everybody get so interested in my personal life?!" Nyikani exclaimed in annoyance.

"Come on, Nyikani." Sokka said with a less comedic tone.

Nyikani sighed and sat down, "It's a long story." She warned.

Sokka called her bluff, "Good, because we have time to kill."

"Was it that fight you and Zuko just had?" Aang asked.

"Not the fight itself," She told him, "it just…dragged up a few unpleasant feelings…about my mom."

"There's nothing wrong with missing your mom, Nyikani." Sokka said.

"That's just it," Nyikani told them, "…I don't."

Aang and Sokka stood for a moment. "You…don't?" Sokka asked.

"No." Nyikani's eyes darkened, "And that's why I don't like to bring it up."

"But…how do you just _not _miss her?" Sokka pressed.

"Like I said, she was never there; I didn't even know what a mother was until I was seven. Dad never brought her up, and when I asked about her he didn't want to talk about it."

"That doesn't mean you should just forget about her."

"You don't get it, Sokka!" Nyikani snapped, "The reason Dad didn't want to talk about my mom wasn't because he missed her, it was because he didn't want me to know about her. My mother didn't selflessly sacrifice herself for her loved ones, she just left!"

Sokka flinched at Nyikani's tone, but Nyikani continued. "Eventually I stopped asking, and I stopped wondering, and I stopped caring."

"So you don't care, at all?" Aang asked.

"No, why should I care about a woman whose own husband didn't want to tell her daughter about?" Nyikani said bitterly.

Sokka stared with wide eyes. He and Katara had always thought the world of their mom, and he just assumed that everybody felt that way about their mothers too.

Nyikani paused when she noticed Sokka's shocked face, "Uh, look, I know you really loved your mom…and you should. From what Katara told me, she was a good person." She told Sokka with an awkward tone, "I uh…sorry, I didn't mean to bark at you like that." Nyikani had forgotten that Sokka and Katara's mother had been killed; she must've sounded pretty heartless.

"It's all right." Sokka told her, although he was still a little shocked.

"It's just that, a lot of people find that fact off-putting, so I don't bring it up." Nyikani explained. After a few moments of awkward silence she spoke again, "If it's all the same to you guys, I'd rather talk about something else."

Sokka and Aang paused, and then Sokka spoke up, "So is this 'Desert Warrior' thing a tradition, or is it some kind of training?"

"It's tradition for all warriors to teach their young the ways of the Jangwa desert and their customs, I was taught by my father, and-"

"And he was taught by his father." Sokka finished for her.

"No."

"No?"

"Grandpa Kuzon was a philosopher," Nyikani corrected, "Grandma threw a mean left hook."

Sokka stared, "You have a weird family."

Nyikani smiled, "Look at the one I'm living with right now."

"What are they like?" Sokka asked, not knowing what she meant.

"Well I'm currently running around with a 112-year old Avatar, a banished Fire Prince, a brick-tough twelve-year old, an escaped convict Kyoshi Warrior, and two Water Tribe siblings…and Cado." Nyikani answered.

Aang laughed, "I guess we are a pretty odd group!"

Everybody laughed, yep, that was their family!

**The Next Day…**

Aang and Zuko stood on the dock with Katara and talked about what had happened. Nyikani and Sokka waited next to Aappa.

"You did the right thing." Aang told Katara, "Forgiveness is the first step you have to take to begin healing."

Katara stood up, "But I _didn't _forgive him, I'll **never **forgive him." She told Aang firmly, her eyes softened when she looked at Zuko, "But I am ready to forgive _you_." As she said that she walked up to Zuko and hugged him.

Zuko watched as Katara walked up to Nyikani, they both smiled and hugged, which made him feel better. Nyikani glanced over at Aang and Zuko and caught Zuko looking at her; Zuko felt a tiny rush of nervousness. Nyikani's smile shrank a little but didn't disappear, and she gave him a tiny nod before joining Sokka and Katara. Zuko looked on, how was he ever going to repair this one?

"She's not really mad at you, Zuko." Aang told him.

Zuko looked at Aang, "How do you know?" He asked.

"Sokka and I talked to her; she was more upset about being reminded of her mom than your fight, it's still complicated, but I think it'll work out." Aang explained.

"I hope so…" Zuko said. That was quite the relief! Well, partially… Nyikani might not be angry with him, but he still hurt her feelings. Things may not be perfect, but they were getting somewhere.

**Bonus Scene!...**

**In the Ember Island Village…Market…place…**

The Gaang was going around the marketplace looking for supplies along with tonight's dinner. Almost everyone had already gone back to the house; all that was left were Toph, Zuko, and Cado who was helping Toph with some groceries.

Toph looked at Cado, "I'm heading back, Cado, you stay here and help Zuko with the rest of the stuff." She told him. Cado reluctantly agreed, Toph grinned deviously as she left the two by themselves, she loved scheming!

Cado and Zuko took one look at each other, and looked away. Zuko could tell that he was the last person Cado wanted to be around. Even _if _Nyikani had started to tolerate him, Cado was an entirely different story, her partner was very unforgiving to people that had hurt his master in any way, earning his trust would be a horrendous task… Oh well, it didn't hurt to try. "Uh…look." Zuko started awkwardly, "I…I uh, Y-you know that um, I feel bad about what I did to Nyikani, I mean uh…b-back in Ba Sing Se. And… I'm trying to earn her trust back, and fix things." …He was talking to a lionwolf, in public.

Cado side-glanced at him and let out a small groan before picking up a basket of groceries and turning to leave. Zuko decided that it could've ended worse, and followed Cado's lead.

"Hey, you!"

Zuko stopped and turned around; two familiar guys were walking up. _Oh no, not these guys._

"You look familiar…" The first one said.

Zuko froze.

The second guy's eyes widened in realization, "I know you! You're that punk who trashed my house!"

Yep, no doubt, it was the two meatheads Chan and Ruon Jian. Even if they were too incompetent to realize just who Zuko really was; they still remembered that stunt that he and Azula pulled.

"You are **SO **gonna get it!" Chan growled, he punched his fist into his hand. Ruon Jian smiled at the thought of finally getting to get even.

Zuko began to take his fighting stance, beating these two would be child's play, but something caused him to pause, a noise coming from beside him. He turned around and saw Cado growling at the two guys, was he…_defending _Zuko?

"Where'd you get the mutt?" Ruon Jian questioned with a rude tone.

"He's not mine, he's a friend's." Zuko answered.

Chan scoffed, "Pretty lame-looking." Cado bared his teeth at Chan, who took a little step back. The fight was about to ensue when another person appeared.

"There you guys are. Come on, dinner's ready back at the house." Nyikani said to Cado and Zuko, she looked at Chan and Ruon Jian, "Who are you?"

Chan put on a cocky smile, "You might wanna step back, babe. We're about to teach this punk a lesson."

Nyikani paused and looked at Zuko, then back a Chan and Ruon Jian, "Why?"

"Because this punk trashed my house at one of my parties, I've been grounded for weeks!" Chan snapped angrily.

Nyikani snickered, "_You _trashed a party?" She asked Zuko in comic disbelief.

"Yeah he did," Ruon Jian said, "and how he's gonna pay."

Chan smiled once more, "It won't take us long; maybe afterwards we could go out and get some dinner."

Nyikani was wearing her famous dead-pan face, "Yeah, no thanks. I'll stick with the punk for a while." She told Chan. Zuko cracked a smile.

Chan's eyes widened, "Wait, you two know each other?!"

"Yeah." Nyikani answered, "I own the 'lame-looking mutt'."

Chan and Ruon Jian were silent for a moment, well, this was awkward. "So…he's like your body-guard or somethin'?" Chan asked.

"More like back up, like if I were up against, say about six people." Nyikani smiled deviously; there was a glint in her eye.

"Yeah right." Ruon Jian was not impressed, "No way a girl could beat us!" To prove his statement he stretched a hand out at Nyikani.

Nyikani move like lightning, grabbing Ruon Jian's arm and flinging him over onto his back. She stood over him, like a wolf standing over an injured prey, "What was that you said earlier?"

Ruon Jian frowned and got up, he and Chan had had enough of Nyikani and Zuko. "Pair of freaks..." Chan grumbled as he stalked off with a pride-hurt Ruon Jian in tow.

Nyikani picked up the neglected groceries as the trio began to walk away, "You get involved with the weirdest people." She told Zuko.

"That's truer than you think." He replied. Zuko looked a Cado; perhaps he was starting to trust Zuko too. Cado looked at Zuko sideways, huffed once, and then trotted ahead.

**Oh Zuko, you really must learn to think before you speak... Basically this is more to learn about Nyikani and how she feels about parents, and although she loved her father her mother was a totally different story, I kinda look at it as one of her flaws. I know there wasn't much about her and Zuko. I decided to post this little part as a bonus scene since it didn't really fit in anywhere, but I still liked the idea of what might happen when Zuko and Cado are in a scrap, although nothing actually happened. But anyway! How will this affect their relationship? Is Cado really starting to trust Zuko? And most importantly WILL NYIKANI BE IN THE PLAY?! Tune in for chapter 17, "The Ember Island Players". Read and review please!**


	17. Chapter 17

**My poor fingers... *sniff* But anyway! Here you have it, "The Ember Island Players". You might have already guessed whether or not Nyikani will be in the play, well, you must read to find out. HAHA! Hooray for ultimatums! :D Ok, serious face, DISCLAIMER!**

**Disclaimer: Ammpaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the oc's she had created.**

**Yay, now enjoy!**

Chapter 17

Aang and Zuko were finishing up another firebending session in the Gaang's new hideout, the Firelord's family summer home. Both benders moved in perfect unison through their fire and movements while Katara and Toph watched idly.

"Doesn't it seem kind of weird that we're hiding from the Firelord in his own house?" Katara thought out loud.

"I told you, my father hasn't come here since our family was _actually _happy, and that was a long time ago." Zuko told her, "It's the last place anyone would think to look for us."

"It certainly wasn't my first guess." Nyikani said, she was standing on the top of the dried up fountain, on one foot.

"Uh, Nyikani? What are you doing?" Katara asked.

"I'm trying this meditation thing, you know, aligning my chakras." She answered.

"You don't align chakras though meditation, Nyikani." Aang explained, "Meditation is to reflect and find spiritual balance within your body."

"Well I could use a little balance in my body too." Nyikani said, "All I need is some peace and tranquili-"

"**You guys are not gonna believe this!**"

Nyikani frowned, "Alright never mind, that course is lost." She said as the hopped down.

"There's a play about us." Sokka told everyone.

"We were just in town when we found this poster." Suki said as Sokka dramatically whipped out the poster Suki mentioned.

"What? How is the possible?" Katara asked in disbelief.

"Listen to this." Everyone gathered as Sokka read the poster out loud. "'The Boy in the Iceberg is a new production from acclaimed playwright, Pu-on Tim, who scoured the globe gathering information on the Avatar, from the icy South Pole to the heart of Ba Sing Se. His sources include singing nomads, pirates, prisoners of war, and a surprisingly knowledgeable merchant of cabbage.'"

"'Brought to you by the critically acclaimed Ember Island Players.'" Suki finished.

"Ugh! My mother used to take us to see them; they butchered 'Love amongst the Dragons' every year." Zuko said distastefully.

Katara looked at her brother, "Sokka, do you really think it's a good idea for us to attend a play about _ourselves_?"

"Come one, a day at the theater? This is the kind of wacky time-wasting nonsense I've been missing!" Sokka said.

**Later that evening…**

Everybody was dressed to go out, Aang had a nice hat to cover his arrow, and Zuko wore a hood to conceal his face. The rest of the kids just wore their Fire Nation apparel. Nyikani managed to get Cado by the authorities as a "Seeing Eye Wolf" for Toph, if those even exist.

Everyone entered their box and sat down, Toph, Katara, Zuko, and then Aang. Sokka, Suki, Nyikani and Cado occupied the second row.

"Hey…uh, I wanted to sit there…" Aang told Zuko.

Zuko removed his hood and looked at Aang, "Just sit next to me, what's the big deal?" He told him.

"I was just…I wanted to…ok."

"Why are we sitting in the nosebleed section?" Toph complained, "My feet can't see a thing from up here."

"Don't worry." Katara said, "I'll tell your feet what's happening."

The room quieted down as the lights dimmed to signify the beginning of the play. The Gaang looked as the production started with two actors rowing their canoe in the South Pole Sea, much to Katara's and Sokka's excitement. Nyikani watched their faces transform from excitement to disbelief as they realized that Pu-On Tim's portrayal was not exactly a bull's eye, Katara was a drama queen, Sokka complained ONLY about food, and Aang was a woman.

"My heart is _so _full of hope, that it's making me **tear-bend!**" Sobbed the actress Katara as she fell to her knees and hugged the actor/actress Aang's leg.

"My stomach is **so empty**, that it's making _me _tear-bend!" Said the actor Sokka, who acted in the same manor.

"This crappy acting is making _me _wanna tear-bend." Nyikani said sarcastically, getting a few chuckles from the rest of the kids. She looked around at everyone else's reactions, Toph was clearly enjoying what she was hearing, Aang, Katara, and Sokka were all in disarray from their portrayals, and Zuko joined their un-enjoyment as his actor made his grand appearance.

"They make me look totally stiff and humorless." Zuko complained.

"Actually, I think that actor's pretty spot-on." Katara told him.

Zuko looked at her, "How could you say that?"

As if on cue the actor Zuko turned around to the actor Iroh and shouted, "HOW COULD YOU SAY THAT?!"

Zuko said nothing and sunk in his seat. Nyikani smiled, but then she noticed something… "Wait, isn't your scar…on the other side?" She asked Zuko.

Zuko took a moment to study the actor, then his eyes widened, "They put my scar on the wrong side?"

"Zuko has a scar?" Toph asked.

"**SSssshhh!** I'm trying to watch our play." Sokka told them.

"Wha-, you were talking too!" Nyikani snapped.

"I was _critiquing_, which is very different."

A theater employee appeared in the doorway, "Excuse me, but some of the other spectators are filing complaints about the noise coming from this box. Please try to be quieter." Said the man, and then he left.

"Nice going, Sokka." Nyikani said with a frown.

Sokka flashed an annoyed glance at Nyikani, but said nothing.

Everyone watched as actor Sokka begged actress Yue to stay with him, "Don't go, Yue! You're the only girl who's ever taken my mind off of food!" They kissed, and after another mundane food joke, actress Yue flew up into the ceiling on the moon. Nyikani watched with sheer boredom plastered on her face, a noise caught her attention, Sokka was sniffling.

"What are you doing?" She asked.

"Yue just became the Moon Spirit! How are you not crying?" He asked.

Nyikani looked at him and lifted one eyebrow in her classic fashion, "I don't _'cry'_." She told him emotionlessly.

The ending ended up being cheesy and as bad as the rest of Act I, while the rest of the audience (and Toph) cheered, the kids sat in a daze at the terrible sight they had just seen. Well, at least it was Intermission.

Everyone sulked outside as they waited for Act II. "So far, this intermission is the best part of the play." Zuko said in annoyance.

Sokka walked out with a bag of jerky in his hand, "Apparently the playwright thinks I'm an _idiot _who tells bad jokes about meat all the time!"

"Yeah, you tell bad jokes about plenty of other topics." Suki joked.

Sokka swallowed a mouthful of jerky, "I know!" He exclaimed before taking another furious bite.

"At least the Sokka Actor kinda looks like you." Aang said, "That woman playing the Avatar doesn't resemble me at all!"

"I dunno, you are more in touch with your feminine side than most guys." Toph teased.

Aang growled and stood up angrily.

"Relax, Aang." Katara said, "They're not accurate portrayals, it's not like I'm a preachy crybaby who can't resist giving over-emotional speeches about hope all the time!"

Everyone stared. "…What?" Katara asked.

"Yeah…that's not you at all…" Aang said.

Toph spoke up, "Listen friends, it's obvious that the playwright did his research. I know it must hurt, but what you're seeing up there on that stage, is the truth."

"Really? Because I'm pretty sure Aang's not a woman." Nyikani retorted, she was combing through a playbill.

"And just what are you doing?" Sokka asked with suspicion.

"I'm making sure I'm not in this thing." Nyikani told him.

"You don't want to be in the play?" Katara asked.

"Well considering what a _'great job' _they did on you guys."

"You were practically living underground for years, what's the worst thing they could do with your character?" Aang asked.

"The playwright's sources included Ba Sing Se, Dai Li agents live in Ba Sing Se, and they would be more than happy to give some playmaker the dirt they have one me."

"Dirt? What kind of dirt could you possibly have?" Sokka asked.

"More than you know…" Nyikani muttered.

Act II had started, Toph grew more exited at her character appearance drew near, "This is it! This must be where I come in!"

As actor/actress Aang landed on stage she proclaimed, "I flew _aaall _over town, but I couldn't find a **single earthbending master!**"

"Here is comes…!"

Suddenly at the drumroll a huge man appeared from beneath the stage rock, "YOU CAN'T FIND AN EARTHBENDING MASTER IN THE SKY! YOU HAVE TO LOOK UNDER GROUND!" He exclaimed as he threw the rock away, this was actor/actress Toph.

The rest of the group burst into restrained laughter as Toph's stage portrayal took the stage.

"Who're YOU?!" Asked actor/actress Aang.

The stage Toph spat, "My name's Toph, because it sounds like **tough. **And that's just what I am!"

Toph cleaned her hear as if she might have heard wrong, "Wait a minute, I sound like…a guy, a really buff…guy!"

Katara slid next to her, "Well Toph, what you hear up there is the truth. It hurts, doesn't it?"

Toph smiled, "Are you kidding me? I wouldn't have cast it any other way!" She said with a laugh, "At least it's not a flying bald lady!" Aang frowned.

Back on stage actor/actress Aang was talking to actor/actress Toph, "So, you're _blind?_" She asked as she waved a hand in front of his face.

The stage Toph laughed, "I can see you doing that, I see everything that you see. Except I don't _'see' _like you do, I release a sonic wave from my mouth." As he said this actor/actress Toph opened his mouth and let out a piercing screech. Nyikani was clutching her ears, "**OH MY-!**" Everyone else, yet again, minus Toph, stared with huge eyes, Cado was frozen. Finally stage Toph stopped, "There, I got a pretty good look at you." While some in the crowd clapped, Cado was still rigid, his eyes still huge, then he slowly fell over.

Suki looked down, "Is he ok?" She asked Nyikani.

The play began to slow down, Zuko and his uncle split up for a while, only to reunite and join the rest of the group to fight Azula, who got away anyway. Things started to pick up again after the Drill Scene where actor/actress Aang attempted to stop actress Azula with paper rocks. The stage was Ba Sing Se. actor Zuko and actor Iroh walked on stage, "This is a nice place, why don't we live here and forget about the Avatar?" actor Iroh suggested.

"How can I forget when it is what I need to regain my honor?!" Actor Zuko snapped dramatically, but he quickly stopped and put his hand up to his ear, "Wait, I think I hear something." He dashed to the other side of the stage, when the lights lit up two supposed Dai Li agents appeared, and suddenly an obligatory fight scene commenced. Actor Zuko fought for about two seconds when suddenly-

"I'LL HELP YOU!"

"Oh no." Nyikani groaned.

Actress Nyikani came sprinting in, with a loud "HI-YAH" She kicked one agent down.

"Aw geez I can't even watch."

Actress Nyikani put her fingers to her mouth and whistled, at her call the stage Cado came running out; surprisingly he was very similar to the actual Cado.

"Hey, Cado, they actually did a pretty good job on you." Nyikani said, but she was quickly proven wrong. The stage Cado bared his teeth and lifted his head, and what came out of his mouth was a weak, high-pitched bark. The real Cado was not amused, his mane bristled and he snarled at this phony pup pretending to be him. Things got even better when the stage Cado let out a tiny, kitten roar. Cado was growing louder, much to the group's dismay, trying to quiet him only _made_ him louder. Cado bared his teeth and inhaled, he was going to show this little mutt what a real lionwolf roar was like, but before he could unleash his fury Nyikani grabbed him by his muzzle and yanked his head close to her face, "Cado Desoto you are **not **getting us kicked out of **another **theater!" She scolded. Cado growled once again, but submitted and sat down.

Sokka looked at Nyikani, "_Another_ theater?"

"It's a long story…"Nyikani told him before turning her attention back to the play. The fight scene was over, she had missed her and Zuko's introduction while trying to keep Cado in line, but it looked like actress Nyikani was standing by herself in a spotlight.

"I am a fugitive, the scourge of my nation…" Actress Nyikani began, still with the dramatic tone. "I, the Wolf Princess, have lived my life here, having to lie to survive, alone. I have never trusted anyone, and yet what is this feeling I feel? I have known him for such a short time…"

Nyikani stared, _How did this playwright find out? _She had no words, she knew this was probably going to be in the play, but Nyikani was still taken aback, but under that, she could feel her anger boiling.

Actress Nyikani continued, "Yet I have already become deeply in love with him. How could he tame my wild heart?"

Nyikani had heard enough. It was bad enough the playwright had turned her into this melodramatic fighting machine with a knack for splurging out her past problems, but this, this too personal. Nyikani got up and walked out the door.

Zuko sat awkwardly as the actress Nyikani went on and on about her bad past and how her heart had been tamed. He heard movement behind him and out of the corner of his eye he saw Nyikani leave, he began to get up and pursue her, but a paw softly landed on his shoulder, Cado's paw. The lionwolf looked at him, at first he thought Cado was just warning him to leave his master alone, but Cado's eyes held no malice, he seemed more concerned by the fact that Nyikani was upset, or at least that's what Zuko thought Cado was thinking.

Back on stage actress Nyikani finally stopped talking. All of a sudden a second spotlight appeared with actor Zuko under it. _Oh on…_ Zuko thought as the two actors came together, "Nyikani, I also feel this way, and I can't think of anything more honorable than being with you!" Actor Zuko proclaimed.

Actress Nyikani took his hand, "I would rather be with you that fight one **thousand **Dai Li agents!"

"Zuko?" Toph asked, "That's not really how it happened, right?"

"No!" Zuko snapped. He knew Toph wasn't trying to be mean, but knowing that his nation was watching such a sensitive matter of his on stage was a bit upsetting. That moment had value to him, and this playwright had butchered it up and stuck it on stage, he knew Nyikani wasn't happy about watching their relationship in a play either. At least it was over, the rest of the act consisted of Jet turning evil and…supposedly dying, and a strange and random romance between Katara and Zuko, but yet again there was another awkward moment, actor Zuko's big decision…

"Well my brother, what's it going to be?" Actress Azula asked dramatically, "Your nation, or a life of **treachery?!**"

Actor Zuko looked left and right indecisively, between Azula and Uncle and Nyikani, "Choose treachery, it's more fun!" Actor Iron said with a smile. Actor Zuko walked over to actor Iroh and actress Nyikani.

"NO WAY!" Actress Azula exclaimed.

Actor Zuko turned around and face actor Iroh, and then pushed him down, "I hate you, uncle, you smell, and I hate you for **all time!**" He shouted as he walked to Azula.

"But Zuko…" The crushed actress Nyikani began.

"I could never be with an honor-less traitor!" Actor Zuko shouted, and with that he and actress Azula exited the stage.

Intermission before Act III was currently under way; these intermissions were looking better and better after every act. Act II left the Gaang feeling like the end of Act I, pretty lousy, Zuko was sulking, Sokka was plotting with Suki, Katara was looking for Aang, Nyikani was angrily sulking, and Toph was probably the only person who was in a good mood.

"It seems like every time there's a big battle you guys barely make it out alive! I mean, you guys lose a lot." Suki pointed out.

"You're one to talk, Suki." Sokka said, "Didn't Azula take you captive? That's right, she did!"

Suki looked a Sokka for a moment, "…Are you trying to get on my bad side?" She warned.

"I'm just saying…"

Katara appeared, "Does anyone know where Aang is?"

"He left to get me fire gummies like, ten minutes ago, and I'm still waiting!" Sokka told her.

Katara didn't pay much attention to Sokka's comment, "I'm gonna check outside…"

While Katara went to check on Aang, Sokka had devised a plan, "Suki! What are the chances you can get me back stage? I have some jokes I wanna give to the actor me."

Suki looked at him with tough eyes, "I'm an elite warrior who's trained for many years in the art of stealth…" All of a sudden she smiled happily, "I think I could get you back stage!"

Sokka and Suki left, leaving Nyikani, Zuko, and Toph, "Geez, everyone's getting so upset about their characters; even _you _seem more down than usual, and that saying something!" Toph said to Zuko.

"You don't get it, it's different for you. You get a muscly version of yourself taking down ten bad guys at once, and making sassy remarks." Zuko told her.

"Yeah, that's pretty great." Toph agreed.

"But for me, it takes all the mistakes I've made in my life and shoves them back in my face. …My uncle, he's always been on my side; even when things were bad, he was there for me, he taught me so much. And how do I repay him? With a knife in his back, it's my greatest regret, and I may never get to redeem myself…"

Toph sat down next to Zuko, "You _have _redeemed yourself to your uncle. You don't realize it, but you already have."

"How do you know?" Zuko asked.

"Because I once had a long conversation with the guy, and all he would talk about was you."

Zuko's face lit up and he pulled off his hood, "Really?"

"Yeah, and it was kind of annoying."

"Oh, sorry."

"But it was also very sweet. All your uncle wanted was for you to find your own path, and see the light, now you're here with us, he'd be proud."

Zuko smiled, up until Toph slugged him in the arm, "Ow! What was that for?!"

Toph smiled, "That's how I show affection."

A little boy dressed up like Aang ran up to the trio, he looked at Nyikani in wonder, "Whoa, your costume's awesome!"

Nyikani exchanged a glance from Toph and Zuko, "…I'm not wearing a costume."

The boy looked somewhat puzzled, "What are you talking about? That's the best Nyikani costume I've seen here, you even have a lionwolf."

"-Oh! Oh yeah, this _is _a costume…." Nyikani said hastily.

"You could be the _real _Nyikani." The boy told her, "Do you know the real Nyikani? I bet that's how you got such a good costume!"

Nyikani stood for a moment, "…You could say that."

"Was she mad when Zuko joined the Avatar?"

Wow, this kid didn't waste time, Nyikani stared for a second, "Uh, what?"

"When Zuko left to join the Avatar's team, was Nyikani mad at him?"

Nyikani's mind was racing, she had to think fast! She thought up an alibi, but stopped. Nyikani slid down and sat on the floor, she looked at the boy, "Well she wasn't crazy about it." She told him.

"Is she still mad?" The boy pressed.

"Well…" Awkwardness filled the room, Nyikani was completely aware of Zuko's presence five inches away from her; the hair on the back of her neck was _bristling_. "She didn't even want to look at him." She confessed, "But she said he's trying to fix his mistakes, and he's been pulling a lot of crazy stunts to prove it." Nyikani cracked a side smile.

"So Nyikani's not mad anymore?" The boy asked.

"The last time I talked to her, she said it was a little confusing, Nyikani's still thinking everything through." Nyikani answered.

"What do you think?"

"Well," Nyikani side-glanced at Zuko, "he proved _me_ wrong."

The boy stood for a moment, and then looked at Zuko, "Your Zuko costume's pretty good too, but your scar's on the wrong side." And with that he zoomed off.

Zuko looked in disbelief, "THE SCAR IN **NOT **ON THE WRONG SIDE!" He frowned and whipped his hood back on his head.

Toph looked around, (irony I know), "Wow, I didn't even need to do anything to make that awkward." She pointed out.

"Yeah, that was pretty awkward." Nyikani agreed. As awkward as it was it felt pretty good to get all of that off her chest. It was awkward for Zuko too, hearing Nyikani of all people speak openly about emotional stuff like that was beyond unusual, even if it did answer a lot of questions he had.

Act III had begun, although there was really nothing interesting after all that had happened during intermission. Aang and Katara had some sort of disagreement, judging by the look on Katara's face, Sokka was actually into the play, and Nyikani felt as awkward as ever. As the act progressed Aang walked in and sulked next to Nyikani.

"Didn't end well?" She asked him.

Aang just looked at her sideways.

"Ah." Was all Nyikani said.

Sokka leaned over to Aang, "Here's what you missed: We went to the Fire Nation, and you got better, and Katara was the Painted Lady, and I got a sword, and I think Combustion Man died." He said, he looked at the stage, "Ooh look, the Invasion's about to start! Sssh."

Aang hardly heard anything, he was too depressed by what had happened between him and Katara, they might never be together now.

"I just want to let you know, Aang, that I'll always love you." Actress Katara told Actor/Actress Aang, "Like a **brother**."

Actor/Actress Aang hopped happily, "I wouldn't want it any other way!" Both shook hands and the stage Aang flew off with her little glider fan. Aang's face flushed as he saw this, he buried his face behind his knees and hid beneath his hat.

While stage Aang was gone, the rest of the Invasion group was looking around for some reason. "Hey, Toph." Actor Sokka began, "Would you say you and Aang have a…_rocky relationship?_"

Sokka could not contain his excitement, as the room filled with laughter he spazzily looked around, he pulled up Aang's hat, "I told him to say that!" And promptly placed Aang's hat where it was and then looked at the stage with anticipation. Suki smiled, Sokka was such a dork sometimes, but he was her dork.

"I hope everyone's ready for the invasion," Actor Sokka continued, "SLAPPA-**POW!**" The rest of the actors looked at him, why was he ad-libbing?!

The real Sokka laughed hysterically at the jokes that **he **had provided, at least the Sokka on stage was more accurate now!

The curtain fell, as it lifted the stage had changed to the inside of the Royal Palace, the stage Gaang ran in. "We finally made it to the Royal Palace, but no one's home!" Exclaimed the stage Aang.

"Actually **I'm **home!" Shouted Actor Zuko, "And I want to _JOIN_ you!"

The group paused, "I guess we have no choice, come on!" Said Actor Sokka. Everyone ran off stage.

"I guess that's it." Sokka said, he got up and stretched, "The play's caught up to the present now."

Suki placed him back in his seat, "Wait, the play's not over."

"But it is over, unless…" Sokka's eyes grew huge, "THIS IS THE FUTURE."

Actor Ozai appeared on the stage set of the Royal Palace, "With the energy harnessed from that comet, no one will be able to stop…**THE FIRE NATION!**"

Actress Azula appeared and bowed before the stage Firelord, "Father! Zuko and the Avatar are at the palace! They are _trying _to **stop **you!" She reported with awkward hand motions.

Actor Ozai paused, "**You **take care of Zuko. I shall face the Avatar…**MYSELF!**" And he disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Suddenly the stage Zuko and Aang appeared, "AANG! **You **find the Firelord, _**I'll **_hold her off!" Shouted Actor Zuko. Aang flew off.

"You are now longer my brother…you are an **enemy**!" Stated Actress Azula.

"**NOOOO! I **AM THE RIGHTFUL HEIR TO THE **THRONE!**" Exclaimed Actor Zuko.

"We'll seeee…" Said Actress Azula. Suddenly there was an intricate 'firebending' battle, but instead of fire, there were ribbons, as the actors whirled around as they whipped ribbons back and forth. All of a sudden Actress Azula lifted her hand up in the air, right on cue a trail of ribbon fire came from the stage floor, leading to Actor Zuko.

"**HONOOOOOOOOOORRR…!**" And with that Actor Zuko fell through a trap door and disappeared behind the fire. Actress Azula bowed to the audience, who cheered ecstatically.

Zuko's eyes widened, the rest of the kids looked at him as he stared at his own stage death.

Actor/Actress Aang walked on stage, she looked around. The stage Firelord appeared in a spotlight some feet behind the stage Aang, "So…you have mastered **all. four. elements?**"

"Yeah, and now, you're going **down!**" The stage Aang proclaimed.

"No…It is _you _who are going **down**." Said Actor Ozai, "You see you are _too late!_ The comet is already here, and I'M **UNSTOPPABLE!**" Without another word the stage Firelord whipped out his fire ribbons, and thus another epic ribbon battle commenced. Stage Aang's staff had two little airbending ribbons, which were used to fight Actor Ozai, but it was all for naught, all of a sudden the stage Firelord brought out a gigantic 'fireball', which wrapped around Actor/Actress Aang, and killed her.

"**NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO**OOOOOOOOOOoooooooo….."

Actress Azula entered stage left, "It is over, father, we've done it."

"Yes, we have **done it**." Agreed the stage Firelord, "The dreams of my father, and my _father's _father, have now been realized." Fire began to rise in walls on the stage as Actor Ozai was raised on a pedestal, the Fire Nation flag came down behind him, "The world…is…**mine…**!"

The entire audience erupted into applause and cheers, even a standing ovation! The entire audience except for the Gaang, who all stared, dumbfounded by the play's momentous ending.

**Later outside…**

The kids were heading home after the play had ended, "That…wasn't a good play…" Zuko pointed out.

Aang: "I'll say."

Cado: *bark!*

Katara: "No kidding."

Suki: "Horrible."

Toph: "You said it!"

Nyikani: "Rotten"

Sokka: "…but the effects were decent."

**Eh...yeah. I'm really tired and I'm getting ready for a big trip, so I don't have too much to say, except that even Nyikani can't lie to an adorable little boy with a cute costume. Plus, it's kinda like she's decided to just come clean, and quit beating around the bush. And yet she also refrains from splurging...like her stage counterpart.(Did you see the reference from "The Boiling Rock? Hint: It's when Nyikani is talking to the little boy.) I really liked writing Actor Ozai's lines, heehee, it was fun to be OVERLY DRAMATIC! And also, with Aang and Toph's actors, I did the actor/actress because a) it was somewhat confusing, b) to differentiate from the real Aang and Toph, and c)...I thought it was kinda funny, ya know, 'cause their actors are the wrong gender. ANYWAY I wasn't trying to be retarded or offensive or anything.**

**Aw geez, guess what's coming next? YOU GUESSED IT, Sozin's Comet. The final hour, the moment of truth, THE HOUR OF DESTINY! OH HOLY CRAP THIS IS GONNA BE A BIG DOCUMENT. Tune in next time for the final chapter! And don't forget to read and review please!**


	18. Chapter 18

**The final chapter... Aw man, this took a LOT of work. TOTALLY WORTH IT! Anyway, SOZIN'S COMET, friggin' epic story to start out with, and then I got to screw with it. :) Just a heads up, a ton of crap is about to go down. Also, there is a little bonus with some trivia and info at the end for you to enjoy. Now Disclaimer, will you do the final honor of disclaiming this last chapter?**

**Disclaimer: Ammypaint DOES NOT own A:TLAB, just the oc's she has created.**

**All right...Here you go! The FINAL CHAPTER.**

Chapter 18

The Final Chapter

It was a warm day at the Firelord's old summer home; most of the Gaang lounged about while Zuko was putting Aang through some intense firebending practice.

"More ferocious!" Zuko ordered as Aang shot more fire, "Imagine striking through you opponent's heart!"

Aang stopped and groaned, "Ugh! I'm _trying_."

Zuko ignored Aang's statement, "Now let me hear you roar like a tigerdillo!"

Aang turned around and blasted a tiny puff of flame to match his weak roar, he smiled at Zuko sheepishly.

"That sounded pathetic, I said **roar!**"

"Try a tigerwolf!" Nyikani shouted, she was sitting on the roof with her feet hanging off the edge.

Sokka looked up at her, "What are you doing?"

"It's called a vantage point."

Aang repeated his movements, but this time he managed to produce a much more impressive amount of fire. The Roar was so scary that it sent Momo running behind Zuko.

Zuko nodded his approval. Aang's training was going well, but there were a few things that needed to be brushed up, and they had no time to lose.

"Who wants a nice cool glass of watermelon juice?" Katara announced, watermelons in hand.

Aang whipped around, excitement painted on his face, "OOH-OOH, me-me-me!" He ran like lightning, only to be caught by Zuko.

Zuko lifted Aang up into the air, "Hey, your lesson's not over yet, get back here!"

"Come on, Zuko, just take a break, what's the big deal?" Suki asked.

Zuko reluctantly released Aang, who quickly grabbed a watermelon. "Fine, if you want to lounge around like a bunch of snailsloths all day, then go ahead!" And with that he promptly stormed off.

"Maybe Zuko's right." Sokka pointed out, "Sitting around the house has made us pretty lazy. But I know just the thing to change that:" Sokka ripped his shirt off, "BEACH PARTY!" As quick as a flash he dived into the water. Katara followed suit, she jumped into the air and proceeded to surf on an ice-board. Nyikani took a stick and threw it with all her strength, Cado took off like a bolt of lightning and streamed after the stick, ran up, launched off of a cliff, and caught the stick in mid-air before landing in the water. Suki sat on a towel and watched as Aang, Sokka, and Toph engaged in a sandcastle-building contest.

Aang put the finishing touches on his Appa sculpture, "Check out my Appa sand sculpture!" Aang said, Appa roared in agreement.

"Not bad, baldy," Toph said, "but I've been working on my sandbending." She cracked her fingers and took a stance, "You're gonna love this!" With one forceful movement Toph created the entire city of Ba Sing Se, in tiny sand castle form.

Aang and Nyikani stared in wonder, "Whoooooaaaa…Wow! You even made a little Earth King and Basco!" Aang exclaimed.

"Is that Tama's shop?" Nyikani asked with a smile.

All three walked up to Sokka, who was busily chiseling away at his sculpture. "Try and top that, Sokka!" Toph said.

Sokka turned around and presented his sculpture, "Tada!" It was a….bizarre…thing.

"Is that a…blubbering blob monster?" Aang asked.

Sokka frowned, "No! it's Suki!"

The trio laughed, "Suki, we'll all understand if you break up with him over this." Toph told her.

Suki smiled, "I think it's sweet." Sokka quickly ran over and kissed his girlfriend on the cheek.

"But, it doesn't even-AAAH!"

Aang was caught by surprise when a fireball collided with Sokka's sand sculpture, it was Zuko. Zuko wasted no time and continued his attack at Aang, destroying the rest of the sculptures in the process.

"What are you doing?!" Aang asked.

Zuko took a fighting stance, "Teaching you a lesson!"

As the chase went over to the house Katara came on shore, "What happened?"

"Zuko's gone crazy!" Sokka said as he attempted to repair his sand sculpture, "I made a sand sculpture of Suki and he destroyed it! Oh, and he's attacking Aang."

Everyone ran back to the house, Suki dragged Sokka away from his sculpting to go help Aang. The chase was still hot; Zuko had driven Aang onto the roof. "Get a grip before I blast you off this roof!" Aang threatened.

Zuko called his bluff, "Go ahead and do it!" And with that he resumed his attacks. Aang quickly hid inside the house.

The rest of the kids had made it to the house, but where were Zuko and Aang? All of a sudden there was a large gust of wind from one of the windows, Zuko went flying, and then crashed down onto the ground where the rest of the group gathered around him.

"What's wrong with you?!" Katara shouted, "You could've hurt Aang!"

Zuko turned around and stared in disbelief, "What's wrong with _me_!?" He asked, "What's wrong with all of **you**?! How can you sit around having beach parties when Sozin's comet is only three days away!" Silence met his claim, "…Why are you all looking at me like I'm crazy?"

Aang spoke up, "About Sozin's comet, I was actually gonna wait to fight the Firelord until after it came."

Zuko's eyes widened, "_After_?" This was NOT good.

"I'm not ready. I need more time to master firebending."

"And frankly, your earthbending could still use some work too." Toph pointed out.

"So…you all knew Aang was gonna wait?" Zuko asked.

"Honestly, if Aang tries to fight the Firelord right now, he's gonna lose." Sokka said, "No offense."

"The whole point of fighting the Firelord _before _the comet was to stop the Fire Nation from winning the war, but they pretty much won the war after they took Ba Sing Se." Katara explained, "Things can't get any worse."

"You're wrong." Zuko told them, "It's about to get worse than you can even imagine…"

The kids listened as Zuko told them of Firelord Ozai's plan to use the comet's energy to burn down the entire Earth Kingdom. Everyone's eyes widened at the thought of just _what_ that meant.

"I can't believe this…" Katara muttered.

"I always knew the Firelord was a bad guy," Sokka said, "but his plan is just pure evil!"

"What am I gonna do?" Aang asked, partially to himself.

Zuko stood up and walked over to him, "I know you're scared, and I know you're not ready to save the world. But if you don't defeat the Firelord before the comet comes, there won't be a world to save anymore."

Aang stared, "Why didn't you tell me about your dad's crazy plan sooner?!" He shouted at Zuko.

"I didn't think I had to." Zuko said, "I assumed you were still going to fight him before the comet, no one told **me** you decided to wait!"

Aang fell to his knees and covered his face, "This is bad, this is really, r_eally _bad."

"Aang, you don't have to do this alone." Katara said.

The rest of the Gaang walked up to him, "Yeah! If we all fight the Firelord together, we got a shot at taking him down!" Toph said.

"ALL RIGHT! Team Avatar is **BACK**!" Sokka announced, "Air, water, earth, fire, **fan and sword**!" As he said this he handed Suki a fan-shaped leaf while he held up a long one as a sword.

Cado roared to remind everyone that he was still part of the combat team; Nyikani smiled, "And tooth and claw!"

"Fighting the Firelord is gonna be the hardest thing we've ever done together…" Aang said, then he smiled, "But I wouldn't want to do it any other way."

Everyone (minus Zuko) ran up for a group hug with smiles on their faces and confidence in their hearts. Katara looked at Zuko, "Get over here, Zuko. Being part of the group _also _means being part of group hugs." Zuko reluctantly complied and joined the hug; at least he was next to Nyikani. Appa decided that he should also be part of the group hug, and promptly squished the kids with his giant affection.

**Later…**

Zuko was preparing Aang with some more firebending practice, Nyikani and Katara watched.

"There's one technique you need to know before facing my father: how to redirect lightning." Zuko told Aang.

Aang's face lit up with excitement.

Katara looked at Nyikani, "Why aren't you training with them?"

Nyikani did not take her gaze from the boys' practicing, "My regular bending still needs work, and even if I eventually restore it, I'm afraid my flow of energy's screwed up for good. I'll never be able to redirect lightning, not without seriously damaging my body, or dying."

Katara said nothing and looked at the boys too, she knew Nyikani had mentioned how her flow of energy had been damaged months ago, but she didn't realize just how serious the consequences were.

**Later that evening…**

The group sat idly and ate their dinner. Sokka had arranged a practice attack earlier; it had gone well for the most part, but Aang seemed to be having trouble with his role in it, he sat a little ways away from the rest of the kids.

Katara walked up to the group, "I have a surprise for everyone!"

"I knew it!" Toph exclaimed, "You _did _have a secret thing with Haru!"

Everyone stared, "Uh, no." Karara said, "I was looking for cooking pots in the attic and I found this." She revealed a picture of a smiling baby. "Look a baby Zuko! Isn't he cute?"

As the rest of the kids giggled and awed at the picture, Zuko kept a straight face.

"Oh lighten up, I'm just teasing." Katara told him.

"That's not me." Zuko stated, "That's my father."

"But he looks so sweet and innocent." Suki pointed out.

"Well that sweet little kid grew up to be a monster, and the worst father in the history of fathers."

"But he's still a human being." Aang said from his spot.

"You're going to defend him?" Zuko asked in disbelief.

"No! I agree with you, Firelord Ozai is a horrible person, and the world would probably be better off without him. But there's gotta be another way…"

Zuko was not convinced in the least, "Like what?"

Aang thought, "I don't know… Maybe we can make some big pots of glue, and then I can use 'glue-bending' to stick his arms and legs together so he can't bend anymore!"

"Yeah, then you can show him his baby pictures and all those happy memories'll make him good again!" Zuko said with mock agreement, Sokka and Suki restrained their laughter.

"Do you really think that would work?" Aang asked naively.

"No!"

"Aang, come on, _glue-bending_?" Nyikani asked.

Aang hung his head, "This goes against everything I learned from the monks, I can't just go around wiping out people I don't like." He told his friends as he paced back and forth.

"Sure you can, you're the Avatar!" Sokka said, "If it's in the name of keeping balance, I'm sure the universe will forgive you."

Aang whipped around, "**This isn't a joke, Sokka!** None of you understands the position I'm in!"

Katara stood up, "Aang, we do understand, it's just-"

"Just what, Katara? **What?!**"

"We're trying to help!" Katara snapped.

"THEN WHEN YOU FIGURE OUT A WAY FOR ME TO BEAT THE FIRELORD WITHOUT TAKING HIS LIFE I'D **LOVE** TO HEAR IT!"

"**AANG**!" Nyikani shouted, "That's enough. Nobody ever said this was gonna be easy."

"You always say that killing is a last resort!" Aang snapped at her.

"Nyikani stood up and stared him down, "**It is**, Aang."

Aang held her gaze, he knew what Nyikani meant, she was saying that there w_asn't _any other way, but he just couldn't accept that. Aang turned around and stalked away.

Katara began to pursue him, "Aang, don't walk away from this!" As she began to walk Zuko stopped her by placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Let him go." He told Katara, "He needs time to sort it out by himself."

Silence hung over the kids, "I never really thought about that before, I mean, not _seriously_." Sokka stated.

"You know, we are asking a lot of Aang." Nyikani pointed out.

"Aang knew this day was coming since the invasion, I figured that he would've actually thought about it by now." Zuko said.

"He knew about it, but it's different when the moment actually comes." Katara told him.

"He might be the Avatar," Toph began, "but he's still vegetarian Twinkle Toes, Aang can't even squish a bug."

"And we're asking him to kill someone." Nyikani concluded.

"But it'll end the war." Sokka pointed out.

"Not to mention that the whole world is at stake." Suki added.

"Saving thousands of lives doesn't come with a personal preference on how to do it." Toph said.

"Toph's right." Katara said, her tone was a little sad. She couldn't help but feel bad for Aang; he had the whole world's fate on his shoulders, and he had to go against his own beliefs to save it.

"There's only one way to restore balance and end the war, Aang's just going tohave to accept it." Zuko said.

Everyone solemnly agreed. Aang would have to do this, for the sake of the world.

**The next morning…**

Appa was loaded up and ready to go! "Ok that's everything." Sokka stated.

"No it's not." Toph corrected, "Where's Aang?"

Everyone looked at each other in shock, how could they have forgotten AANG?! Quickly the group ran back into the house.

"Aang? **Aang!**" Zuko called out.

"Come on, lazybones, let's go!" Toph shouted.

No answer.

The kids split up and searched every corner of the house; it wasn't long after that they regrouped. Toph shrugged, Nyikani and Cado reappeared, "Nothing but stale scents." She reported.

Sokka, Suki, and Katara walked out to the balcony, Aang's staff was still there. "He left his staff, that's so strange…" Sokka thought out loud.

Zuko, Toph, and Nyikani and Cado appeared, "Aang's not in the house." Zuko told them, "Let's check the beach.

As the Gaang stepped onto the beach a familiar set of footprints were spotted. "Look! There's his foot prints!" Sokka pointed out, they followed the prints which led them to the edge of the ocean, "The trail ends here."

"So…he went for a midnight swim and never came back?" Suki suggested.

Katara looked out to sea, "Maybe he was captured."

Sokka was studying the prints, "I don't think so, there's no sign of a struggle."

Nyikani and Cado walked to the water's edge, "Cado, _**harufu!**_"(scent)

On command Cado began to sniff the footprints in the sand, followed them to the water, and sniffed over the waves, but the look he gave his master was not promising.

"Nothing?" Nyikani asked.

Cado's ears twitched, as if to say, _'There is nothing."_

"That's really weird…" Nyikani mumbled.

"What is?" Sokka asked.

"Usually there's at least some scent left hanging above the water, but this time…the trail literally **stops** right here."

"I bet he ran away again." Toph concluded.

"Uh-uh, he left behind his gilder and Appa." Sokka pointed out.

"Then what do _you _think happened to him, oh sleuthy one?"

"It's pretty obvious; Aang mysteriously disappears before an important battle with no scent? He's definitely on a Spirit World journey!" He declared.

"But if he was, wouldn't his body still be here?" Zuko asked.

Sokka frowned, "Oh yeah, forgot about that…"

Katara spoke up, "Then he's gotta be somewhere on Ember island, let's split up and look for him."

Toph latched onto Zuko's arm, "I'm going with Zuko!"

Everyone stared.

"What? Everyone else got to go on a life-changing field trip with Zuko, now it's my turn."

Nobody argued. Sokka set off with Appa, Katara and Suki went into town, Nyikani and Cado set off through the deeper part of the island, and Toph and Zuko combed the perimeter. Zuko looked back and saw Nyikani and Cado take off, he had hoped to go with her, it would've been the perfect chance to get her alone and talk, but he had to focus at the task at hand.

Meanwhile, Nyikani and Cado were walking through some of the jungle area, both were silent. Cado looked at Nyikani sideways, he let out a little huff, '_Did you wish to go with the fire boy?'_

Nyikani kept her gaze forward, "Finding Aang is what's important right now, personal stuff can wait."

Both kept walking, Cado knew his master was only using Aang's disappearance to avoid his question, he whined once more, _'I always wondered what would become of me if you were to find a mate.'_

Nyikani stopped and looked at him, "What do you mean?"

Cado looked at her, _'Would I still be Beta, or would I no longer be needed?'_

Nyikani was a little shocked, what had brought all this up? "What, you think that if I ever get married I'll get rid of you?" There was a pause, Cado didn't sound insecure, but rather he was actually inquiring about it; he was her beloved companion, and a wolf companion's purpose is to remain by its master's side all its life. A little stab of remorse went through her as she realized she kind of snapped at him, all Cado was doing was asking if he would still be needed by his master. Nyikani knelt down and placed her hand on Cado's head, "Hey," She said with a side smile, "you'll always be my beta, that'll never change."

Cado looked at Nyikani and huffed once more, _'So, did you wish to go with the boy?'_

"Aw geez not you too…" Nyikani stood up and started walking again, "Since when did you ever show any interest in him?" She asked.

'_When my master began to show interest.'_

Nyikani's face began to turn red, "We need to focus on finding Aang." She said hastily. Cado followed suit, although he wasn't quite as focused on Aang as Nyikani, he was thinking about someone else. Zuko had successfully become a member of the pack, and Nyikani seemed to trust him now; but the big question still remained: could Cado trust this boy to protect his human?

With no luck both returned to the house, where they met everyone else but Sokka, "Nothing?" Nyikani asked, silence met her answer.

Sokka and Appa reappeared, "Judging by the looks on your faces I'm guessing you guys didn't find Aang either." He said as he hopped off of the bison.

"No, it's like he just…disappeared." Zuko said.

Toph sat up, "Wait a minute! Has anyone noticed that Momo's missing too?"

Sokka turned around with a look of horror on his face, "Oh _**no**_! I knew it was only a matter of time! APPA. **ATE. **_**MOMO**_**!**" Sokka opened Appa's mouth, "Momo, I'm comin' for ya buddy!" He called as he climbed into Appa's mouth.

Katara looked at her brother, "Sokka, Appa didn't e_at_ Momo, he's probably with Aang."

"That's **just **what Appa wants you to think!"

"Get out of the bison's mouth, Sokka!" Zuko said, "We have a real problem here, Aang is nowhere to be found and the comet is only two days away!"

Everyone looked at Zuko, "What should we do, Zuko?" Katara asked.

"I don't know…" He noticed the group staring at him, "Why are you all looking at _me_?!"

"Well, you are kinda the expert on tracking Aang." Katara told him.

Toph chimed in, "Yeah, if anyone's got experience hunting the Avatar, it's you."

**Later…**

Zuko's experience had taken them to the Earth Kingdom, to be more specific, a seedy tavern.

"And the reason you've brought us to a seedy Earth Kingdom tavern is, what now?" Katara asked. (redundance?)

Zuko pointed to a girl dressed in black who was currently owning every man in the tavern, "Jun."

"Oh yeah that weird bounty hunter with the giant mole." Sokka said.

"Mole?" Suki inquired, "Her skin is flawless."

"No she has this giant mole creature she rides around on." Sokka explained.

"The shirshu." Zuko said, "It's the only animal that can track Aang's scent anywhere in the world, it's the one shot we have at finding him."

The kids watched as Jun flawlessly took out a burly fighter, without even spilling her drink. "I don't know who this Jun lady is, but I like her!" Toph said.

Jun kicked a chair into place and then sat in it. "Hey, I remember her," Sokka began, "she helped you attack us!"

"Yup, back in the good old days." Zuko said.

The group walked up to Jun, "Oh great it's Prince-Pouty, where's your creepy grandpa?"

Zuko frowned, "He's my uncle, and he's not here."

Jun basically ignored his rude tone and looked at Nyikani, "I see you found a girlfriend."

Nyikani stood with crossed arms and lifted one eyebrow, "I'm not his girlfriend." She said with a matter-of-fact tone.

"Then why are you blushing?" Jun asked.

Nyikani began to turn red, "I am not!"

Jun smiled, "You are now."

Nyikani growled, "**Wote haki kusikiliza wewe ki-**"

Sokka and Suki quickly cut her off, Suki held her back while Sokka covered her mouth.

"Ok, ok, sheesh, I was only teasing…" Jun said, "So what do you want?"

"I need your help finding the Avatar." Zuko told her.

"Doesn't sound too fun…"

Zuko looked at her, "DOES THE END OF THE WORLD SOUND LIKE MORE FUN?!"

Jun called her bizarre pet with a raw steak, "Ok, so who's got something with the Avatar's scent on it?"

Katara pulled Aang's staff from Appa's saddle, "I have Aang's staff."

Nyla sniffed the staff, sniffed around, sniffed around some more, and then sat down and whined.

"Well what does that mean?" Zuko asked.

"It means your friends gone." Jun told them.

"We know he's gone, that's why we're trying to _find_ him." Toph pointed out in a smart-alecky manor.

"No I mean he's **gone **gone, he doesn't exist."

"What do you mean Aang doesn't exist?" Sokka asked, "Do you mean he's, you know, _dead_?"

"Nope, we could find him if he were dead." Jun explained, "Well, it's a real head-scratcher. See ya!" And with that she hopped onto her shirshu and began to leave.

"Helpful, real helpful." Toph said.

"Typical bounty hunter…" Nyikani grumbled.

"Wait, I have another idea." Zuko said, "There's only one other person in this world who can help us face the Firelord." He looked at Jun, "I'll be right back with a smell sample."

Zuko returned with a dirty sandal, Iroh's sandal.

"You kept your uncle's sweaty sandal?" Sokka asked as he held his nose.

"I think it's kind of sweet." Toph said.

Nyla quickly sniffed the sample, "Let's do this." Jun said, and with that she was off.

"Hey! Wait up!" Zuko called, Jun hadn't even let them get on Appa before taking off. Jun led them across the Earth Kingdom, dropping the kids off at the wall of Ba Sing Se, where they made camp for the night. Camp was rather short-lived, everyone (minus Toph) slept on Appa's soft fur, Nyikani and Cado were back-to-back next to Zuko, Sokka and Suki were with Katara, and Toph had her little rock-tent. Suddenly Toph felt something, or rather some_one_, or rather a lot of people, she removed her tent right before a ring of fire encircled the group. On the ledge overlooking the camp emerged…a bunch of old people.

"Well…look who's here!" King Bumi said with an eruption of laughter.

After an introduction of familiar faces the Order of the White Lotus took the group to their camp; Nyikani didn't realize just how many members Sokka and Katara knew. "Here we are." Bumi told them, "Welcome to Old People camp!"

Zuko looked around, "Where…where is he?" He asked.

Piandao pointed to a tent, "Your uncle's in there, Prince Zuko." Zuko's eyes filled with fear, what would Uncle say? Would he be angry? Upset? What if he didn't want to see his nephew? All of the thoughts filled his head as he made his way to the entrance of Iroh's tent. Zuko stopped for a moment, and sat down.

"Nyikani walked up, "Are you ok?" She asked.

"No, I'm not ok, my uncle hates me, I know it. He loved me and supported me in every way he could, and I still turned against him. How can I even face him?" Zuko said.

"Zuko, do you regret your actions?" Nyikani asked.

"Yes! I regret them more than anything in my entire life."

Nyikani looked at him, "Then he'll forgive you, he will, Zuko."

Zuko took a deep breath and stood up. Nyikani also stood up and began to walk away, "I did." She said quietly as she walked, just loud enough to be heard.

**In the morning…**

The Gaang waited for Zuko to return. No one was really sure what to expect, or what would happen next. Sokka caught Nyikani glancing at Iroh's tent once again, "You know, looking at the tent won't make things go any faster." He told her.

Nyikani scowled at him, "I know that!" But both quieted down when Iroh came from his tent with Zuko close behind, who had a smile on his face as he wiped the tears from his eyes. Smiles creeped up onto everyone's faces, it was good to see that Zuko and his uncle had worked things out. As the two walked up the rest of the Gaang bowed respectfully to Iroh.

Iroh returned the gesture, "Welcome, we have much to discuss." He told the group.

"Hello, Iroh." Nyikani said as she bowed.

Iroh smiled, "It has been quite some time since we last met." He placed a hand on her shoulder, "But I am glad to see that you are safe."

Nyikani smiled awkwardly, "Thank you…"

The kids sat around Iroh with their breakfast. "Uncle, you're the only person other than the Avatar that could possibly defeat the Fatherlord." Zuko said.

"You mean the _Fire_lord." Toph corrected.

"That's what I just said!" Zuko snapped.

Iroh said nothing and thought about what Zuko said. "We need you to come with us!" Zuko pressed. Iroh looked up at his nephew, "No Zuko, it won't turn out well."

"You can beat him, and we'll be there to help."

Iroh continued, "Even if I _did _defeat Ozai, and I don't know that I could, it would be the wrong way to end the war. History would see it as just more senseless violence, a brother killing a brother to grab power, the only way for this war to end peacefully, is for the Avatar to defeat the Firelord."

Zuko looked at his uncle, "And then…then will you take your rightful place on the throne?" He asked.

"No, someone new must take the throne, an idealist with a pure heart, and unquestionable honor. It has to be you, Prince Zuko."

Zuko was shocked, "Unquestionable honor? But I've made so many mistakes."

"Yes, you have, you struggled, you suffered, but you have always followed your own path, you restored you own honor, and only you can restore the honor of the Fire Nation."

Zuko looked down, "I'll try uncle…"

Toph spoke up, "Well, what if Aang doesn't' come back?"

"Sozin's comet is arriving, and our destinies are upon us." Iroh stated, "Aang **will **face the Firelord. When I was a boy, I had a dream that I would one day take Ba Sing Se, only now do I see that my destiny is to take it _back _from the Fire Nation, so the Earth Kingdom can be free again."

"That's why you gathered the members of the White Lotus." Suki pointed out.

"Yes." Iroh looked at Zuko, "Zuko, you must return to the Fire Nation, so that when the Firelord falls, you can assume the throne, and restore peace, and order. But Azula will be there, waiting for you."

Zuko frowned, "I can handle Azula…"

"Not alone." Iroh told him, "You'll need help."

"You're right, Katara, Nyikani, how would you like to help me put Azula in her place?" Zuko asked.

"It would be my pleasure." Katara said.

Zuko smiled, "Nyikani?" Nyikani was looking down at her bowl, but then she looked up with side smile, "I thought you'd never ask."

"What about us?" Sokka asked, "What's our destiny today?"

Iroh smiled, "What do _you _think it is?"

Sokka thought for a moment, "I think that, even though we don't know where Aang is, we need to do everything we can to stop the air ship fleet."

"And that means when Aang does face the Firelord, we'll be right there if he needs us!" Toph concluded.

Iroh smiled, they had all learned well.

Piandao placed Sokka, Suki, and Toph on a giant eel hound for their journey, while Zuko, Katara, and Nyikani and Cado climbed onto Appa. "So if I'm gonna be Firelord after the war is over, what are you going to do?" Zuko asked his uncle.

"After I reconquer Ba Sing Se, I'm going to reconquer my tea shop, and I'm going to play Pai Sho every day!"

The group looked at each other; Nyikani looked at Sokka, "Last one home buys the drinks!" She joked with a bittersweet tone. Sokka smiled, "You're on!" He knew that was her way of telling him to return safely, even Nyikani was acknowledging the fact that they might not see each other again.

Katara looked down at the White Lotus, "Goodbye, General Iroh."

"Goodbye, everyone. Today, destiny is our friend, I know it." And with that, they departed.

**Later on the way to the Fire Nation…**

Appa was on his way, while he flew Sozin's comet rose up over the horizon behind him. Zuko, Katara, and Nyikani sat on Appa's head while Cado looked at the comet from the saddle. Zuko seemed to be lost in thought.

"Zuko, don't worry, we can take Azula." Katara assured.

"I'm not worried about her; I'm worried about Aang, what if he doesn't have the guts to take out my father? What if he loses?" Zuko asked.

Katara looked at him, "Aang won't lose, he's gonna come back. He has to…"

Things were quiet for a little while. Nyikani was not watching the comet, but she could feel its power beginning to fill her body as it drew closer, "Can you feel it?" She asked Zuko.

"The comet's already giving us strength, and it hasn't completely arrived yet." Zuko said.

"All the other firebenders are about to get a serious overcharge." Nyikani pointed out.

"What does that mean?" Katara asked.

"It means we're in for one heck of a fight."

**Meanwhile…**

The Dai Li entered the royal throne room; they kneeled before Azula, who did not seem happy. "You sent for us, Princess, is everything alright?" The head agent asked.

"Actually, everything's _not_ alright." Azula answered, "Do you know how long it took you to get here?"

"Uh, a few minutes, I guess?"

"Five to be precise, in which an assassin could've snuck in, done away with me, and been on his merry way!"

"My apologies, Princess." The agent said casually.

"Is this how you plan to treat your new Firelord?" Azula asked, "With tardiness and disloyalty?!"

"The Dai Li would never betray you!"

"And I'm sure that's just what you told Long Feng before you turned against him and joined me." Azula said, suddenly she shouted, "YOU'RE ALL BANISHED!"

"But-"

"Goodbye."

The head agent didn't argue, he calmly stood up and walked away with the other agents in tow, all except for one.

"Except for you, Lao." Azula called out, Lao stopped and looked at her, "You and I have a little score to settle."

Lao kneeled down once more, "Yes, Princess."

**Meanwhile…**

Appa was still flying, Katara was now in the saddle with Cado, Nyikani and Zuko were sitting on Appa's head. "We should be there soon." Zuko said.

Nyikani was silent, _Do it, c'mon! Quit being such a pup! Have some guts! _"Zuko…"

"What is it?" Zuko asked.

"I…uh well, I'm not used to saying stuff like this, but what I'm trying to say is that I-"

"There's the Royal Palace!" Katara stated. Suddenly everyone looked down to see that, in fact, there was the Royal Palace, (EPIC REDUNDANCE IS EPIC). Appa flew down to the Coronation grounds, where Azula was just about to be crowned Firelord.

"By decree of Phoenix King Ozai, I now crown you, Firelord…" The sage stopped.

Azula whipped around, "What are you waiting for?! **Do it!**" Suddenly a roar was heard, Appa landed.

"Sorry, but you're not going to be come Firelord today." Zuko declared, he jumped off of Appa, "I am!"

Azula laughed, "You're hilarious."

Nyikani, Katara, and Cado walked to Zuko's side, "And you're nuts." Nyikani stated.

"And you're going down." Katara told her.

The sage was just about to place the royal crown onto Azula's head, but she stopped him, "Wait!" She stood up, "You want to be Firelord? Fine, let's settle this, just you and me, brother, the showdown that was always meant to be, Agni Kai!"

Nyikani and Katara were un-phased, surely Zuko wouldn't be so stupid as to give in to this and let Azula trap him. "**You're on!**"

They were wrong, or so it seemed, "What are you doing?!" Nyikani asked, "She's playing you, she knows she can't take all of us so she's trying to separate us!"

"I know, but I can take her this time." Zuko said.

"But even you admitted to your uncle that you would need help facing Azula." Katara pointed out.

"There's something off about her," Zuko explained, "I can't explain it but she's slipping, and this way no one else has to get hurt."

Katara and Nyikani reluctantly agreed, they stood on the sidelines as Zuko and Azula began their Agni Kai. "We're allowed to step in during this, right?" Nyikani asked Katara.

"You won't have time to worry about him." A voice said behind the girls, and Cado. Cado's mane bristled, his lips curled back and a deep growl emanated from his throat, he knew that voice. Nyikani turned around with a loathsome look in her eyes, "I thought I left you in Ba Sing Se." She said, "What do you want, Lao?"

Lao smiled and stepped forward, "I want your head cut off, it seems to be the only way for you to stay dead." He looked down at her stomach, "So I've heard your bending's a little worse for wear."

"Yeah well, I've got a comet." Nyikani said casually. Lao took his stance, Nyikani took hers, and Cado stood by her side. Before engaging, Nyikani looked at Katara, "I'm afraid you're gonna have to sit this one out too." She told her, "This is between him and me…and Cado."

Lao looked at the pair, "Hmph, still as poorly behaved as ever." And with that he shot a rock hand at Cado. Cado quickly dodged, but was a little surprised at the force behind Lao's attack, Lao was letting it all loose. Nyikani quickly took advantage of her unlimited supply of energy and sent out a series of white fireballs while Lao released an onslaught of rocks. Nyikani felt a rush of excitement, how long had it been since she could bend to this caliber! Physically, her firebending was still weak per say, but the comet allowed her to produce more powerful fire without too much exertion. Cado was busily leaping and snapping at Lao, hoping to get in a scratch or two before quickly hopping back away from any of Lao's attacks.

Katara watched both fights, ready to step in if either of her friends needed her help, Zuko and Azula were creating an inferno as they raged on, Nyikani and Cado were handling Lao, although she worried that Nyikani might get too excited with her bending and overdo it.

Lao was fed up with this dog! As he shielded himself from another fire attack he locked onto Cado, and with a heavy stomp he pushed up a rock pillar directly below Cado, which violently struck him in his stomach and sent him flying. "Cado!" Nyikani called. Lao turned around, "Don't get too distracted by your comrade!" He sneered; in a surprise attack he shot a rock hand that nailed her directly in the head. Nyikani slowly turned around, she was making a familiar noise, and her eyes had shifted, Lao had just made a mistake. Nyikani took her stance, she was ready to get rid of this man, with great speed she began to attack, Lao was desperately trying to keep his defense, but Nyikani had gone into wolf mode, and he was losing his ground fast. In a desperate attempt to buy some time Lao leaped up onto the roof of the building surrounding the coronation grounds, but Nyikani quickly followed, as they took their fight up to the roof Katara watched as Zuko began to gain the upper hand during the Agni Kai.

Fear grew in Lao's eyes, not only was Nyikani feeding off the comet's energy, but she had also let out her inner wolf, she was a fighting machine with no intent of letting him get away this time, Lao could only defend himself from the never ending torrent of fire attacks raining from this wild animal of a person. Another violent fireball came his way, Nyikani was beginning to close the gap, she inched closer and closer with every attack.

Nyikani was done screwing around. She got closer, taking advantage of the fact that Lao could only defend from attacks with no time to counter, this fight would be over soon. Suddenly Nyikani paused, what had stopped her? Nyikani was suddenly aware of a dull pain in her side. _Oh no. _Had she overexerted herself? The wound hadn't seemed to open, but there was still a pain warning her that she was beginning to push her limit, she was tempted to ignore it, but her thoughts were cut off when Lao saw this as an opportunity. Lao fired a rock foot that hit Nyikani in the stomach, sending her off the roof and onto the ground, as she refocused he contorted the ground beneath her, sinking her right hand into the earth. Nyikani's eyes widened as she fruitlessly attempted to pull her hand out, her wrist would dislocate if she pulled any harder, her hand would not budge.

Lao smiled, "Looks like I win." His smiled disappeared as he heard a vicious snarl behind him, Cado had returned.

Katara quickly ran up to Nyikani, "Are you all right?" She asked.

"Yeah, I just need to free my hand." She told Katara.

Meanwhile Zuko had totally owned Azula, "No lightning today? What's the matter, afraid I'll redirect it?" He taunted.

Azula stood up, "Oh, I'll show you LIGHTNING!" She furiously summoned the lightning.

Zuko took a deep breath and prepared to redirect Azula's lightning.

Azula prepared to strike, but a much more vulnerable target caught her eye, with a maniacal smile she shot her lightning just to the right of Zuko.

Nyikani was still struggling to remover her hand when suddenly a bright light caught her attention, Azula had fired a bolt of lightning, and it was aimed at her. Everything seemed to slow down; Nyikani was immobile as she saw the blue lightning streaming towards her, with her hand trapped she had no way to protect herself, she was going to die. All of a sudden she saw a shape run in-between her and the lightning, her heart stopped when she saw their face, it was Zuko. Horrified, Nyikani watched him take the full force of the lightning strike, Zuko landed hard on his side, she felt sick to her stomach as she saw him tremble with the lightning in his body, and with a groan of pain he rolled onto his back, clutching his chest.

"_**ZUKO!**_"

Katara rushed to his side, but before she could reach him Azula fired another bolt of lightning at her, maniacally laughing the whole time.

Nyikani was scrambling in a frenzy to free her hand. Zuko was dying, she had to do something, and she had to do it **now**.

Lao had engaged Cado, but Cado wasn't playing it safe anymore. The wolf did not even flinch as his right cheek was slashed by a shard, he did not reel back when Lao punched a rock into his chest, he only got angrier. In a flash he had quickly dodged and ducked, Cado sunk his teeth into Lao's leg , but Lao was not going to back down either and continued to bombard the lionwolf with rocks. Both struggled and simply refused to give in, they toppled off the other side of the roof and behind the building, (note that they are now out of sight of everyone else), Cado landed on top and prominently pinned Lao down.

Lao stared with terrified eyes, Cado snarled with a paw lifted high and claws unsheathed, ready to strike, but stopped. Slowly the lionwolf lowered his paw, concealing his claws once more; he looked down at Lao with disgust in his eyes. '_Weak creature… So ready to take my human's life yet so fearful to lose your own…' _Cado's reflection shown in Lao's eyes, the wolf paused, and then suddenly he bared his teeth once more and snarled. There was a vicious roar and a flash of fangs and-

**Meanwhile…**

Katara quickly ran over to the struggling Nyikani and soaked the ground, softening the hardened dirt and clay enough for Nyikani to release her hand. When Nyikani was free she attempted to reach Zuko, only to be stopped by Azula's endless attacks, she had finally snapped. Katara grabbed her wrist and both girls ran for cover, Azula used her fire to fly on top of the roof of a building, "I'd really our family position look after little Zuzu if you don't mind." She said as she summoned more lightning, Katara created a wall of water to protect them. More blue fire followed, Nyikani blocked it with her own white fire as she and Katara attempted to hide behind some pillars."Zuzu, you don't look so good." Azula said, she shot another lightning bolt at the girls, Katara and Nyikani ran to another set of pillars, Katara brought a large wave of water over where she thought Azula still was, but it turned out that she was no longer there. Azula appeared behind them and gave chase, Katara used the water to surf away while Nyikani was still trying to block the fire, but she was reaching her limit. Katara stumbled as she ran out of water, and Nyikani was knocked backwards by the force of Azula's attack and quickly scrambled next to Katara. "We can't keep running around like this." She said out of breath, her wound was really starting to hurt now. Katara didn't seem to notice her, she was staring down at the ground, Nyikani looked out of curiosity and saw that under the floor was a water drainage system, she looked at Katara, "What are you thinking, Katara?" She asked. Katara looked up at her, "I have an idea." She stated, then she looked over at a set of chains hanging on a door.

Azula looked around a pillar and spotted Nyikani and Katara, "There you are filthy peasants!"

As Azula walked closer Katara waited, suddenly she whipped out streams of water in some attempt to grab Azula, Azula prepared to strike Katara with lightning, but all of a sudden Katara pushed up the water beneath them, and froze it. Nyikani stared; Katara and Azula were…frozen? Then things got really weird, Katara had managed to liquefy the water around her, and like a fish in a bowl, swam around in the ice, chaining up the immobilized Azula. When she was finished she forced all of the water back down again. Both girls gasped and coughed, Nyikani ran over and helped Katara tighten the chains, and welded them together for good measure. Now with Azula incapacitated, it was time to help Zuko.

Zuko was still in pain and barely hanging on, Nyikani rushed to his side and placed him on his back, her heart sank when she looked down and saw a very bad burn on his chest. Katara arrived, she tried to touch Zuko's wound, but as she did a tiny electric shock startled her. Cado had reappeared, not that it's really important, but I felt like pointing it out.

"There's still lightning inside of him." Nyikani said.

Katara looked at her, "What can we do?"

"The only way to save him is to pull it out."

"But you said you couldn't redirect lightning." Katara pointed out.

"Maybe not normally, but the comet is still giving me energy." Nyikani explained, she had to do this; if she didn't Zuko was going to die. Nyikani stood up and took a deep breath; she leaned and held her hand over Zuko's wound, and with great force pulled out the lightning, ignoring the screaming agony coursing through her body. Zuko clenched his teeth as Nyikani ripped out the lightning. Nyikani pointed her fingers up and released the lightning into the sky, the force was so strong that it knocked her onto her back; she panted and gasped and clutched where her scar was, the tips of her fingers were burned and her bangs were singed, "All right, that's your cue." Nyikani said to Katara.

Katara pulled out some water and began healing Zuko's wound, Nyikani watched with anxious eyes, did he survive? Nyikani's heart stopped when she noticed that Zuko didn't seem to be moving, but to her relief he opened his eyes. Zuko looked at Katara and Nyikani, "Thank you…" He said weakly. Katara had tears rolling down her face, "I think we're the ones who should be thanking you." The girls and Cado helped him to his feet.

Azula refused to accept this degrading defeat, and in a fit of rage she spat fire from her mouth, slowly the trio watched as her rage diminished into sobs and wails. Zuko looked on as his sister went insane; as Katara comforted him he noticed that Nyikani was standing a few feet off, she was looking away, he placed a hand on her shoulder.

Nyikani slowly turned around, hiding behind her bangs were eyes full of…_tears?_ Suddenly she wrapped her arms around Zuko and began to tremble, _You're alive, oh thank the Spirits you're alive…_ "I thought you were gone…" She said quietly.

Zuko was a little surprised at Nyikani's emotional outburst, but he returned her gesture and put his arms around her also, holding her close. As they embraced Nyikani grunted and placed her hand on her side.

Katara looked at her, "Did you reopen your scar?" She asked.

"I'm fine; I just pushed myself a little too hard." Nyikani said. Katara caught a glimpse of the wound she was trying to hide, the blood was beginning seep in-between her fingers, it was worse than she said.

Katara lifted one eyebrow, "So you reopened it?"

Nyikani hung her head like a child that had just been scolded, "…Yes." She paused before looking at Cado, "What happened to Lao?" Cado made no sound; he simply flicked his ears and looked away. Nyikani knelt down and put her hand on top of his head, there was some sort of 'Companion-Master' telepathy going on through their eyes.

"We should head to the Palace." Katara stated.

Zuko nodded, who knows what Azula's done with the place?

Nyikani stood up and motioned for Cado to follow; this battle had left everyone a little solemn. Nyikani felt a hand touch hers, Zuko's hand; she slid her hand into his and entwined their fingers, the hard part was over, in more ways than one.

Zuko's thoughts were confirmed when his and Nyikani's eyes met, there was more than simple relief and joy behind her gesture, but that would have to wait, they had some serious rebuilding to do.

**The Next Day…**

Coronation Day! The Royal Palace was in quite a state after only one day of 'Firelord' Azula, and the palace officials were surprisingly supportive of Zuko's victory over her. Everyone was un-banished and busily working to help the Gaang and prepare Zuko for his coronation; now all that was left to do was wait.

Zuko, now all bandaged up, attempted to slip his robe on, he managed to get one arm through his sleeve before cringing in pain. Even with Katara's expert healing the lightning wound was still tender.

"Need a little help?" A voice asked. Zuko turned around and saw Nyikani leaning against the doorway. "Nyikani, you're all right." He said as she walked up. Cado walked up beside her, but to Zuko's surprise he stopped, dipped his head, and then turned around and left. Zuko stared, was Cado really leaving him alone with Nyikani?

"Of course I'm all right!" Nyikani told him, right before wincing at a little jolt of pain from her newly opened scar, "Ok, I'm not completely fine." She admitted, "But _you _almost died." Nyikani helped Zuko put his other arm through the sleeve and tied his robe for him. She was sporting a new set of bandages also, her stomach had been wrapped up along with all of her fingers, and her bangs were a bit shorter.

"I could say the same about you." Zuko told her.

Nyikani stopped for a moment, she knew that what she had done was a risky stunt, if fact the only reason she had successfully removed the lightning from Zuko's body was because of the comet, and probably solely the comet. Sozin's comet was what kept her from basically bleeding her insides out through her scar, but Nyikani didn't realize that Zuko knew that. "Zuko…there was something I wanted to talk about." She said.

Zuko looked at her, "What is it?"

"Well…" Nyikani became nervous, "I was going to tell you on Appa while we were on our way here but I ran out of time and" _(I'm rambling) _"then we were fighting Azula and you got hurt and I should've done it before" _(I'm rambling!) _"but I didn't have the guts and I was still confused about my feelings and" _(SHUT UP) _"now that I know I was going to tell you that I l-"

She was cut off when Zuko suddenly seized her arm, yanked her towards him, and kissed her. Nyikani was completely caught off guard, when they stopped she was still wide-eyed, but slowly she leaned in and kissed him back.

"So, I take it you're not mad anymore?" Zuko asked.

"I wasn't just mad at you…" Nyikani confessed, "I was mad at myself. I couldn't understand why I still had feelings for you even though I **was **mad at you, and I couldn't handle seeing you come back and apologize, because I knew you really meant it." Nyikani's face wore a look of frustration, "You just, ERGH! You drove me crazy! You said you were sorry, you still cared about me, you tried to prove it over and over, you…" Nyikani sighed and looked down for a moment; she placed her hand on his bandages, "You saved my life…and almost lost yours doing it." She looked back at Zuko, her eyes yet again full of several different emotions. "It took you almost dying for me to own up to the fact that I…" She sighed once more.

Zuko said nothing, he knew what she was trying to say, even though she was struggling so hard to say it, he silently slipped his hand over Nyikani's; they entwined their fingers, and he pressed his head against hers. For the first time in a long time, Nyikani did not resist, she didn't realize how much she missed this feeling, and a smile slowly appeared on her face. Suddenly she looked at Zuko, "But don't ever pull a stunt like that again." She told him sternly. Zuko was a little startled, but smiled as they closed their eyes and embraced each other.

**Outside…**

Sokka and Katara had reunited with their dad, Cado was happily greeting Teo, and Toph was catching up with some friends when Nyikani appeared. "I hope you're ready to buy those drinks!" She said to Sokka.

"And where were _you_?" Sokka asked.

"I went to see Zuko before the coronation."

Toph walked up, "I knew it! I knew I saw two people kiss in the palace!"

"**What**?!" Nyikani was beginning to blush.

Sokka seized the moment, "Ohhh… So you were enjoying a little _alone _time with Zuko, huh?"

Nyikani looked at him with one of her dead-pan faces, then she shouted, "**Hey everyone** SOKKA'S TREAT TONIGHT!" Everybody around them cheered and patted Sokka on the back. Sokka glared at the now smiling Nyikani. "But all jokes aside," Nyikani began, she suddenly hugged Sokka, "glad you got home in one piece, both of you."

"Alright, alright, don't get mushy." Sokka said. His statement was completely ignored as Toph came up and joined in, quickly followed by Katara.

Suki appeared with her warriors, now with Ty Lee part of the group, and after greetings the Coronation went underway.

Everyone cheered as Zuko made his appearance, but he lifted up his hand for them to stop, "Please, the real hero, is the Avatar."

Aang stepped up, the cheering grew even louder.

"Today, this war is finally over!" Zuko announced, which gave way to more cheering. "I promised my uncle that I would restore the honor of the Fire Nation, and I will. The road ahead of us is challenging, one hundred years of fighting has left the world scarred, and divided, but with the Avatar's help, we can get it back on the right path, and begin a new era of love, and peace." The Fire Sage came forward; Zuko knelt down on one knee as he received the royal crown. "All hail Firelord Zuko." Once again the crowd erupted into cheering, Zuko and Aang walked forward and looked at the crowd, there was a lot of work to do.

**Later in Ba Sing Se…**

The sun was beginning to set on the Earth Kingdom capital, the group was in Iroh's tea shop, enjoying the peaceful time before the big celebration. Iroh was playing the tsungi horn, Toph sat idly on a table, the rest of the girls were sitting at a table, Aang was playing with Momo, Cado was resting under Toph's table, Zuko was going around and serving tea, and Sokka was doing…something.

"ZUKO STOP MOVING!" Sokka shouted, "I'm trying to capture the _moment_!" He began to move a paintbrush about, "I wanted to do a painting, so we always remember the good times together."

The rest of the group walked up to take a look. "That's very thoughtful of you, Sokka." Katara said, then she looked at the painting, "Wait, why did you give me Momo's ears?"

"Those are your hair-loopies!" He explained.

Zuko took a look at himself, "At least you don't look like a boarcupine, my hair is not that spiky!"

"Dude." Was all Nyikani said.

"What?"

"I _look _like a dude! And Cado looks like a giant fuzzball."

Cado looked at the painting and displayed his distaste by wrinkling his nose.

"And why did you paint me _firebending_?" Suki asked.

"I thought it looked more exciting that way." Sokka pointed out, Momo hopped onto the table and chittered at Sokka. "Oh, you think you can do a better job, Momo?"

Nyikani shrugged, "Well…"

Sokka frowned, "Well maybe I could've gotten better painting supplies if I didn't waste all my money on **sake**!"(sah-kee) He said as he looked at her.

Nyikani smiled, "And we'll enjoy every drop tonight."

Iroh looked at the painting, "Hey, my belly's not that big anymore, I've really trimmed down."

Toph threw her hands in the air, "Well I think you all look perfect!" Everybody laughed.

Nyikani looked around at the smiles and happiness; a year ago she never would've guessed this is where she would be. One year ago she was working in the explosives shop with Tama, hiding her own name and avoiding authorities, now she was celebrating the end of the War, with close friends and loved ones, her close companion Cado, her best pal Sokka, Aang, Katara, Toph, Suki, Iroh, Zuko… This was a life she never could've imagined.

**Sometime later…**

The celebration was over, there was laughter and joy and thanks to Sokka plenty of sake to go around, and Tama had outdone himself with the firework performance. Afterwards the Gaang had dropped Zuko and Nyikani off at the Royal Palace, where plans were already being made for the restoration movement. They were on their way. Zuko was looking out of a window in the royal hall when Nyikani, accompanied by Cado, walked up and stood next to him.

"The Harmony Restoration Movement's going smoothly." She reported.

Zuko exhaled, "I can't help but feel like things are going to start getting complicated."

This time Nyikani slipped her hand over Zuko's, "Don't worry." She told him, "You're not doing this alone; the whole team's got your back." She was silent for a moment, then she leaned against Zuko, "Everything's gonna start changing, isn't it?"

"If we want peace, things are going to have to change." Zuko stated with a serious tone, but he smiled and looked at Nyikani, "But not _everything_ is going to change."

Nyikani smiled and pressed her head to Zuko's, something occurred to her, she had neglected to tell Zuko something important. "Oh, I forgot to tell you something." Nyikani began.

Zuko looked at her questioningly, "What?"

She leaned in close, "_I love you._"

Zuko said nothing for a moment. It had obviously been implied, but to hear Nyikani say that was very different, but he smiled all the same. Things were going to change, but one thing wouldn't, nothing could tear apart this group.

**Facts about Nyikani and other Things**

The fact that Nyikani shed tears for Zuko is actually very important to the plot, as she states in the last chapter that she does not cry. So that means that losing Zuko was enough to bring her to tears.

The only other time Nyikani has cried was when her father was killed.

Crying is seen as weakness in the Jangwa culture, because when you mourn you are vulnerable. Traditionally one sits vigil through the night to mourn and then moves on; usually they have another person there to keep watch over them, but it is very rare for one to shed tears.

It was heavily implied that Cado killed Lao Che.

Nyikani is the only one that really comprehends the fact that Cado killed a person, Zuko and Katara knew but didn't really grasp the notion, and nobody else ever knew at all until later. She eventually told Zuko after the Yu Dao incident. The rest of the group found out later, this caused tension due to the fact that Nyikani had kept it secret from everyone else. But it was later resolved. (Hmmm…This might be an interesting story idea…)

Nyikani is able to firebend without re-opening her scar now, but she'll never be able to bend for a very long period of time without still hurting herself. She cannot bend lightning under any circumstance after the comet passed. So to sum it up, Nyikani's bending gets better over time, but it is permanently handicapped, she can't bend for too long or push herself too hard.

Zuko is the first person to ever apologize to Nyikani.

Nyikani's father's Spirit Wolf is the tigerwolf.

Nyikani's father's partner was a tigerwolf named Moja. (Moja only had one eye…poor thing. But the name fits!)

I initially started out with Katara being Nyikani's closest friend in the Gaang, but I wound up loving the dynamics between her and Sokka. You can see the transition in the later chapters.

The price on Nyikani's head was sought after so much mainly due to the novelty; bounty hunters wanted to catch the "Wolf Princess" who was claimed to be half animal and insane.

Nyikani is genuinely afraid of killing a human being. Although she may threaten people with murder it is most likely just a bluff. She might do it if there is no other way to end a conflict, or in the heat of battle on the front-lines but in cold-blood is out of the question.

Nyikani is a poor swimmer and not very fond of water, this can be seen as she desperately tried to keep the balloon up in "The Boiling Rock".

Nyikani's greatest fear is cannibals.

It is actually more common for a warrior to have a wolf partner that coincides with their Spirit Wolf, so Nyikani and Cado are an unusual pair.

Nyikani cannot actually speak wolf, but she and Cado have spent so much time around each other that they simply understand each other's speech patterns. She and Cado have a very strong bond compared to other Companion-Master pairs her age, but this is once again due to the fact that Nyikani literally spent much of her time alone with only Cado.

Nyikani is the only person to ride a lionwolf, as most wolf-mounts are tigerwolves. (They're the only ones that are big enough.)

I was originally going to have a female tigerwolf somewhere in Piandao's mansion, but couldn't fit it in, and it wasn't important to the plot.

Nyikani's favorite food is apples.

Cado's favorite food is fresh fish.

If you paid close attention, Zuko did the same thing while Nyikani was confessing as he did on their first date in Ba Sing Se. The whole grabbing her arm and kissing her thing.

I made the finger-entwining gesture a thing between Zuko and Nyikani because it seemed so cute.

Cado's favorite person in the entire group (second to Nyikani) is Teo.

Nyikani's favorite drink is sake. She actually doesn't like tea, but Iroh's well-made tea is an exception.

Nyikani was initially going to be a painter, but over time and character development it never really had any significance and no longer seemed like something Nyikani would do in her spare time.

Even though Nyikani acts like she can't stand Sokka, she actually has a very deep respect for him as a fellow warrior, and he ended up being her best friend out of the Gaang.

It is said that Anaiu the White Wolf Star appeared in the sky after the great and beautiful white tigerwolf Anaiu died. Anaiu is revered in the Jangwa culture as a hero and spirit, whose white coat signified that she was endowed with mystic powers. (Maybe I'll write the story later…)

Believe it or not, I am actually a Meiko fan. Partially cuz it's canon, true, but also because I like Mei. My only problem with her was that she was too underdeveloped, I would've loved to see more of her in the show and learn more about her, I think it could have helped her character a lot.

I've been seeing a lot of "Mary Sue" stuff lately, and what defines a Sue. A lot of writers really go to huge lengths to try and justify how their character is not a Sue in any way shape or form. Now I haven't had anyone claim that Nyikani is a Mary Sue, but I'll admit she has some Sue-ish qualities; ya know, she has no parents, a rare form of some type of bending, a wolf pet animal companion partner thing, and we CAN'T forget that she ends up with the sexy bad boy! But she has her faults, she messes up, she gets angry with people, and she's wrong sometimes, but that's not the point. There's a difference between an over-powered rainbow deity and an interesting character. I love Nyikani, and I wouldn't change a darn thing about her. If you're confident about what you've made then stick with it, if you feel there's room for improvement then change the picture. It doesn't hurt to listen to suggestions on development, but there's nothing wrong with making a character that you're proud of. Ya know, so long as they don't screw the plot over and make everyone go totally OOC. Anyway there's my Sue disclaimer!

Actually, I started out with the first chapter being a joke, and never really had any intention of making an actual story of it, I just kinda wanted to post my odd Sue-ish Oc for the lulz. But you guys all wanted more, and I started really to enjoy writing this fanfic, the dynamics, the "what if"s, the action, and it turned out to be a good story! In the end I'm glad that I did write this, it was fun.

**Oh gosh, that ending... Lord I suck at endings! I know there was a lot going on, but I hope I did a good job explaining and writing everything properly. Well I think I did a good job!**

**I've been reading the comic that comes after the show, and I'm toying with the idea of writing a story about that. What do you guys think?****If you guys have any other questions, comments, or other stuff, feel free to ask!**

****Well...there you have it! I can't believe it's over... I, I think I'm kinda sad. *sniff* But this was tons of fun to do, and I'm glad you guys enjoyed it.****

*****Salutes you* It has been an honor serving with you! :') Good bye for now. And don't forget to always read and review!****


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